Protector of the Weak
by J. Maria
Summary: While on a patrol, Dawn finds herself pulled into England's past. Will she ever find her way home, and if she can, will she even want to? crossover with King Arthur COMPLETE
1. 1 Through Space and Time

Title: Protector Of The Weak

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 to R

Disclaimer: Not mine. Joss owns all things BtVS, and somebody else owns K.A.

Spoilers: Season 7, and the movie _King Arthur_

Summary: While on a patrol, Dawn finds herself pulled into England's past. Will she ever find her way home, and if she can, will she even want to?

A/N: Yes, I'm obsessive-compulsive over King Arthur. It should wear itself out in a few months . . .give or take. I also know nothing about England/Scotland's landscape (I'm from the Mitten) so, there's gonna be some artistic license. This is going to be a 5 part story. It's also for the Fic for All pairing #1122 Dawn /Dagonet.

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Protector of the Weak

1. Through Space and Time

The tall brunette woman dodged the charge of the oncoming vampire. Dawn Summers ducked quickly out of it's path and watched as it stumbled forward. Hefting the broadsword, she aimed for the neck. The vampire screamed out as it disintegrated into dust.

She could hear the fighting of the slayers who were attacking the main vamp nest. Dawn was in Scotland overseeing the Slayer Summer Camp before heading back to college in the fall. Technically, Giles was in charge of this camp, like he was in charge of all of the slayers and the Watchers. Buffy hadn't been too happy when she'd learned that Dawn was going to go on active patrolling. She was a grown woman, after all - or very nearly anyway. Besides, Buffy was in happy 'normal girl' land with her stupid boyfriend, The Immortal. No, she wasn't jealous at all. She sheathed the broadsword at her hip. If anyone saw her, they'd think she was just a re-enactment nut who was out of costume.

Dawn dusted her clothes off and reached for her cell phone. Buffy was the first number she called. It always was. The slayer retreat was north of Hadrian's wall, and the Watcher's were based in London. She knew Buffy was there right now, holding the fort while Giles ran the retreat.

"Buffy?"

"Hey Dawnie. What's up?" Her sister asked breathlessly over the phone.

"Just wanted to check in and tell you that I haven't been eaten by any vampires or demons."

"Dawn, don't be like that. I worry about you -"

"Buffy, you have me call you at least twice a day, or you send out a slayer squad to make sure I'm safe." Dawn rolled her eyes. "Anyway, I've got to check into the activity leader."

"Call me when your in for the night, Dawn." Buffy answered. "I love you, Dawnie.

"Sure. Love you too, Buffy." Dawn hit the end button. "Even if you worry way too much about me and treat me like I'm five."

The wind had started to pick up then. Dawn could hear the distant rumblings of thunder. _Great, just what I need_, she thought as she punched in the direct line to the retreat base.

"SSC HQ, Miss Summers. Go ahead." Anthony St. Clair, the dispatcher said crisply.

"Yeah, I've got the northern quadrant clear. Tell Rory, the tech guy sitting probably five feet away from you, to update the tracking devices. One vamp, no others. Tell Mr. Giles to have the girls check back in a few days. Empty nests attract homeless vamps and demons."

"Yes, Miss Summers. What's your ETA?"

"Give or take a half hour. I've got a storm coming in over here. Could be longer." Dawn looked up at the gathering storm clouds.

"Good night, Miss Summers."

"Night."

She slapped the cell phone shut and made her way over to where her car had been parked. Granted, it was a little ways away. She glanced around her cautiously as she crossed through the high grass. Dawn berated herself. She should have never worn these stupid chunky heeled shoes. They were giving her blisters.

Soon Dawn had very little time to contemplate her shoes. The ground shook fiercely and she felt herself falling to all fours. Wind began to squeeze down on her, pushing her farther from her goal. She began to roll downward. Letting out an undignified screech she felt her body collide heavily with the ground and the nearest tree trunk - which was odd because the nearest tree was at least twenty feet away. She wasn't the heaviest person around, but even she knew the wind couldn't possibly push her that far.

That and trees didn't groan, unless she was in the land of Oz. She saw a blue skinned creature land funny beside her, setting an arrow off. She could hear horses and the yelling of men. She tried to back quickly away from the creature beside her. Dawn could hear arrows whizzing past her. She slid down the incline towards the horses.

Dawn hadn't thought to grab for the sword. She had a bad feeling that her cell phone's reception was gonna be nonexistent. Especially when she saw the chain mail the men. One of the horses reared. She covered her head with her arms.

Dawn had a really crappy history with chain mailed riders.


	2. 2 Marching Orders

Title: Protector Of The Weak

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 to R

Disclaimer: Not mine. Joss owns all things BtVS, and somebody else owns K.A.

Spoilers: Season 7, and the movie _King Arthur_

Summary: How does her arrival back in time affect the knights?

A/N: For those readers out there who are like me and have wanted to see a King Arthur crossover, there are two other stories I've written. They can be found in my story Winter Tidings (Plight of the Hawk(chapter 24) and Old Souls(chapter 28)). Ages - the knights would be in their mid twenties (they were taken as young boys and served for 15 years) and Dawn is 18/19 (Did Joss ever give us her age? Buffy was about five when she was born, and she was born in '81. That would make Dawn's birth year either '86-'87.), she'd be in her first or second year of college. Also, I'm basing this off of the Director's Cut, because that's the only version I've seen, and I'm practically following the movie. Transcript provided by Fallen Knights Thanks to all of you who reviewed! Your advice and comments are always appreciated.

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2. Marching Orders

They had been stationed at the Wall for fifteen years. There had been more before, but the constant fighting between the native people had left their numbers depleted. There where only six left now. Bors, Dagonet, Galahad, Gawain, Lancelot, and Tristan.

They were Sarmatians, descendants of the Sarmatian Cavalry forced by the treaty mad with Rome to serve. They had been the fittest, the fastest, the best of the best. The ones with the most luck. Their freedom was nearly theirs, and rested in the hands of the Roman Bishop Germanius. But there was a catch. They could not be free until after they rescued the family of Marius Honorius.

The Sarmatian knights, while mainly embittered that they had to take this final mission, did it in the end because of their leader Arthur Castus. They had left the Roman fort south of Hadrian's Wall shortly after dawn. They traveled without rest for most of the day, and would continue through the night in order to reach the home of Marius Honorius.

Seven knights, traveling on a suicide mission to save Roman blood from Saxon swords. They travel in near silence, speaking only when necessity called for it. The sky darkened, and the feeling of unease grew heavier around the knights. The forest cast odd shadows. They tread into heavily inhabited Woad territory. Tristan, the scout of the group, let his hawk fly. He lead his horse closer to Arthur and spoke quietly.

"Woads. They're tracking us." He said simply.  
"Where?" Arthur asked.  
"Everywhere."

Woads surrounded them, arrows at the ready. At a silent command, they fired. Each arrow worked in blocking their prey's path.

"Get back!" Lancelot yelled, his voice joined by Bors' yell.

Thunder boomed around them, as they sought for a different path out of this wretched forest. It was of little use, and they could feel the Woads closing in on them. An arrow whizzed past Dagonet's head as they searched for another means of escape. A

"This way!" Arthur shouted, urging his horse into action.

They raced through the forest, but only to find themselves in another dead end. Movement caught the eyes of the knights, as the Woads tried to spear them. They skirted away from the low attack, but found they could not get very far.

Arthur drew Excalibur from it's sheath, preparing for their attack. The other knights followed in suit, each drawing his own weapon of choice. There was a sound in the distant, like that of a horn summoning or signaling the Woads.

"What are you waiting for!" Gawain yelled.

The Woads retreated as silently as they had come, slipping deep into the forest and away from their targets. There was one noise in the air, nearby yipping sounds.

"Inish! Devil ghosts!" Dagonet yelled, the brush near him moving erratically.  
"Why would they not attack?" Galahad demanded.  
"Merlin doesn't want us dead." Arthur replied.

Before another word could be spoken, a figure fell heavily out of the brush. Long brown hair and gangly limbs encased in dark material. Dagonet's horse reared at the new arrival, and Tristan and Galahad aimed their bows at it. It screeched and covered it's head with it's arms.

"Don't! Don't! I'm not armed!" It screamed in a very feminine voice.

"What do you call that sword, then?" Bors demanded.

"Ok, so I am! But don't kill me!" It yelled. "I didn't attack you!"

Dagonet quickly dismounted, handing his reins over to Bors. He yanked it to it's feet. The sword hit her legs, and she sucked in a pained breath.

"I'm not with the Blue Man group!" The girl cried. Dagonet winced at the high pitch of her voice. "I swear!"

"Who are you?" Arthur demanded.

"Dawn. Dawn Summers."

Dawn knew covering herself with her arms was one of the weaker defensive moves she could have pulled, but at that point she really didn't have a lot of options. She was decent with a sword, but her gut was telling her that they were all at least ten times better than she was. The blue skinned men had already retreated. They probably thought she was one of them.

There were seven of them in all. Two had shaved heads. The one on the horse nearest to her was taller and a little leaner than the other. He was stockier. One had light brown hair that was nearly as long as hers'. The three had dark brown or black hair that seemed to curl. The seventh man had medium brown hair that seemed to hang over his face. Her next gut reaction was to have verbal diarrhea all over them.

"Don't! Don't! I'm not armed!" She cried, her voice probably higher than it should be.

"What do you call that sword, then?" The stocky bald one demanded.

"Ok, so I am! But don't kill me!" She yelled. "I didn't attack you!"

The tall one grabbed her upraised arm. As she was dragged to her feet, the large awkward sword banged into her knee. She held back the urge to swear and yell out. Knights were crazy. They might take it as a sign that she was possessed and get all kill-y with those swords and bows.

"I'm not with the Blue Man group!" She cried. Besides, Lorne had told her they were demons and they kinda scared her. "I swear!"

"Who are you?" The tallest of the dark curly haired men demanded. He must be the leader.

"Dawn. Dawn Summers." She gulped. "I just fell. I hit one of the blue painted guys -"

"Woads." The one with hair in his face supplied.

" -And then I fell down the hill again. I just want to go home." Her knee felt like it was on fire and her arm ached from the man's firm grasp.

"Where is home for you, girl?" The leader asked again.

It took her a second to think about that. Giles would be near the wall. And the camp was a little ways away.

"Hadrian's wall." She blurted.

"Funny, we are from the fort there. I don't ever recalling seeing a woman bear arms around there." The snarky reply came from the curly haired knight with a goatee looking beard.

"Maybe you just weren't looking hard enough." Dawn couldn't help from snapping. She wasn't usually quick with retorts, but working for the Council for the last three years and hanging around the Scoobies for the last ten years had made her quick at slapping down annoying people.

"Lancelot." The leader warned. "We have neither the time or men to spare in taking you back, lady. You will have to come with us. Can you ride?" He asked her. Dawn was too dumbstruck by his words. He frowned at her. "Dagonet, take her on your horse."

Dawn felt herself being helped onto the horse of the man who held her arm. She straddled it, her knee throbbing. She'd only ridden once or twice before. Her mind, however, was not on her ability to ride a horse. It was on the knight's name.

"What's the year?" She asked the large man seated behind her softly.

"467." He said hesitantly.

"Oh." Dawn felt her bottom lip quiver. She was nearly sixteen hundred years in the past. "Your leader - his name isn't Arthur by any chance, is it?"

"Arthur Castus." Dagonet answered simply.

"Lancelot and Arthur." She muttered under her breath. She closed her eyes and felt them burn with unshed tears.

Arthur felt Lancelot's presence before the other knight even began speaking. Lancelot would have something to say about this, he was certain.

"Arthur, why do we bring her with us? She will slow us down, and she may be a spy."

"For who, Lancelot? The Saxons do not bring their women to war." Arthur replied.

"No, but the Woads do."

"She is not a Woad." Arthur was sure of this. She did not have the build of the natives.

"She was armed." Lancelot retorted. It was a weak argument, and he knew it.

"She is no threat." Arthur cast a glance back to Dagonet and the strange girl who rode with him.

Dagonet looked cautiously down at the girl before him. She was young. Perhaps a few years younger than he, nearer to Galahad's age. Too young to be wielding such a large weapon as the one on her hip.

She slept as they rode, trusting him enough to do so. It spoke in volumes to him. She knew of danger, but could sense the goodness in life. What kind of life could have created someone like that? What woman her age could keep that innocence of childhood?

The remaining knights all quietly observed the girl on Dagonet's horse. Bors was reminded of Vanora, for the girl had a bit of spunk to her just like his Vanora. But he was also wary of her presence. Tristan searched her face for hints as to what sect of people she belonged to. She didn't bear the marks of Woad, nor those of Saxon. She must be a Briton then. Galahad and Gawain noticed her beauty. Jols, the squire seemed cautious of her even as he gave Dagonet another cloak to wrap around her. Horton, Bishop Germanius' secretary, seemed distasteful.

All were wary of the newcomer. Who knew what this unexpected addition

They rode through the night, and Dawn, who was already emotionally exhausted by the whole time-traveling ordeal, found herself drifting off to a light sleep. She dreamt of Knights. Knights who said 'Ni', signing knights, and coconut horses. There was a splash, and Dawn awoke abruptly. She nearly screamed when she saw the ground rushing past her. She hit her elbow into the muscled chest that had acted as her pillow.

"Awake then?" A deep voice rumbled through her human pillow.

"Yeah." She blinked a few times, shivering as the cold wind raced past her. "Stupid Xander and his Monty Python marathon." She muttered.

"I am Dagonet." He said shortly. He pulled the cloak tighter around her.

"What? Oh, yeah. I'm Dawn."

"You awake near your namesake, lady."

"Did I drool?" She asked.

"No." A small smile passed over his lips.

They rode in silence for a few minutes. Dawn was trying to think of all the knights names, but there were so many different stories that she wasn't sure of what knights were really here.

"What are the other knights names?" She asked abruptly.

"Bors, Galahad, Gawain, Lancelot and Tristan."

"Who's who?" She questioned.

"Bors." He gestured to the bald man. "Galahad." To the curly haired knight with a full beard and mustache. "Gawain." To the long haired knight. "Lancelot." To the smarmy one from before. "Tristan is not here. He is -"

"The one with hair in his face and the tattoos under his eyes." She supplied.

"Yes."

"Galahad the Chaste, Gawain and the Green Knight, Lancelot du Lac, Tristan and Isolde." Images from all the books and movies she'd seen about the fabled knights raced through her head. "Bors and the killer bunny." That scene had explained Anya's fear of bunnies.

"What?" Dagonet demanded.

"Those are tales they tell of you where I'm from." She wasn't really lying.

"Killer bunnies?"

"It's a thing." Dawn replied, shaking her head. "I've never heard tales about a Dagonet."

"I've never heard any of those tales, lady." He stated.

"I wouldn't expect you to have." She muttered under her breath.

How the hell did she wind up sixteen hundred years in the past? There hadn't been any portals, at least none that she could see. Her cell phone wouldn't work here, and she didn't know how to get home.

She stared ahead at the other knights. Arthur's armor was different than the others. It looked very familiar. It stuck her where she had seen it before.

"Arthur's armor is Roman." She said. Dawn looked down at Dagonet's gauntlet. "Yours isn't."

"It is Sarmatian."

"Sarmatian." She murmured.

"Yes."

Researching had always been kind of fun for her, and she remembered the phase she'd gone through right after they'd moved to Rome. She'd read tons of things on Ancient Roman history, and remembered reading about the battle with the Sarmatians.

"Wow. What are you doing in England then?"

"England?" Dagonet questioned.

"Briton." She corrected herself.

"Serving in the Roman army, as my father did before me."

"For how long?" It was like pulling teeth to get him to answer.

"Fifteen years."

"Do you miss your family?" She asked quietly.

"I do not remember them." Dagonet said simply. He pondered her question.

"What were you doing so far from the wall and your family?"

"My family's not at the Wall." She said, trying to avoid his first question. "I only have a sister and she's in Rome, with her -" How to put it? "Her lover."

Lover was more accurate, because they were at it like bunnies. Which was one of the reasons Dawn had wanted to go to college in England, and didn't like staying with Buffy for long visits. To be honest, she didn't like the Immortal all that much.

"You do not care for him?"

"He's a jackass and a control freak." She blurted.

"Then your husband? Will he not miss you?"

"I don't have one. There's no man in my life." She said bitterly. It seemed like everyone else she knew had someone, and little Dawnie was left by herself again. "And your - lady?" She asked, mainly to take the pressure off herself.

"I have no one, save my brothers in arms." He smiled sadly. "And Bors' brood of bastards."

"Brood? How many does he have?" She asked.

"Eleven."

"Eleven?"

Before she could say another word, Arthur signaled them. Looming before them was a large Roman building. Dawn gasped in awe at it. They rode through the peasant village and to the gates. Dawn wasn't sure what was going on, but she had a bad feeling about it.

A/N2: Okay, I've been working on this since I woke up (which was four this afternoon). Feedback would be greatly appreciated.


	3. 3 In the Darkness

Title: Protector Of The Weak

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 to R

Disclaimer: Not mine. Joss owns all things BtVS, and somebody else owns K.A.

Spoilers: Season 7, and the movie _King Arthur_

Summary: Everyone has secrets, causes, dreams, and nightmares

A/N: This story follows the Director's cut of the movie, practically line for line (of course except for those lines concerning Dawn). Which means certain characters will die. Those who have seen the movie know who these characters are. This, as of right now, is a Dawn/Dagonet pairing. I like Dagonet, he's probably my second favorite of all the knights (Tristan being number one in my heart). He's also the only one I have never heard mentioned in the myths and legends (all the others are). For those who haven't seen the movie, this is nothing like the other legends of Arthur. On another note, Merlin is the chieftain of the Woads (the native British people). There are no magic powers in this movie, and women are not warriors, unless they are Woads.  
I like Dawn. I've always liked Dawn, and being a younger sister who is often compared to her older sister, I can relate with Dawn.  
Once again, I'd like to thank the reviewers. Your support, critiques, and requests for more have given me the motivation to get more out. Who knows, it might even be longer than five chapters.

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3. In the Darkness

Dagonet felt dread return to him as they neared Marius Honorius' home. They would collect the Romans and return to freedom. That was the hope, at least. Dagonet had a sickening feeling that he would never return home to Sarmatia. Bors had never planned on him leaving anyhow. He believed they would have rule over Brition once the Romans left. Dag had never thought that far ahead. He never thought he'd live to see that day. He still had doubts if he would.

The warm body in front of him gasped at the Roman home. Dagonet spoke quietly to her.

"You'd do best to keep yourself wrapped in that cloak."

"Why? I mean besides the fact that it's freezing?" Dawn asked.

"Romans do not like seeing ladies in men's clothing." He said simply. His thoughts, however, ran something along the lines of 'the first man who ogles you will be killed'.

"Gotcha." She pulled the hood of her black sweater over her head, covering her hair, and wrapped the cloak tightly around her.

She had an odd way of speaking. He found that rather charming. Dag and Lancelot rode directly behind Arthur, who led them to the hastily shut gates of the Roman villa. Arthur reined in his horse in, the other knights following suit. A guard from atop the outer wall called down to him.

"Who are you?"

"I am Arthur Castus, Commander of the Sarmatian Knights, sent by Bishop Germanius of Rome." He said in a very commanding voice. "Open the gate."

There was silence from the gate wall. They attracted quite the crowd, and peasants left off working to gather in closely around the knights. Dagonet's horse became impatient.

"Keep your head down, lady. Do not attract the eyes of the Romans." He murmured.

Dawn felt her heartbeat flutter in excitement. She kept her head down as he told her to, but found she couldn't keep her gaze in one place. Which had been his hands for most of the ride, and he had really nice hands. Big, nice hands. Which made her think of the old addage: big hands, big feet, big -. That was when she adverted her eyes. _Bad Dawnie_.  
The first thing she saw was the weird little addition someone had made to the side of the gate wall. The bricks were different than the others. Why would someone do that? It messed up the whole - Ok, it was official. She needed to stop hanging around Xander when he was in rare form about construction.

The second thing she noticed was the weird animal hanging on the spit across the way. She squinted to get a better look at what it was, but the gates were opening, and she shifted her gaze back to them.

"It is a wonder you have come." A short, fat Roman noble boomed, making his way through the gate. He was heavily surrounded by guards. "Good Jesus." He clapped his hands together, "Arthur and his knights."

He made to pet Galahad's horse. Galahad backed away, not wanting the Roman to touch his horse. Marius gave a small laugh and turned his attention back to Arthur.

"You have fought the Woads. Vile creatures." He said this while smiling.

It struck Dawn as odd. The way he held himself. She shivered against Dagonet. Marius reminded her of - who did he remind her of? She thought hard on it for a second. He seemed to be a goofy man who knew things; important things, evil things. She looked back over at addition. Only one name came to mind in her head.

"Doc." She whispered.

"Our Orders are to evacuate you immediately." Arthur said. Marius looked around behind himself before turning back to Arthur with a nervous laugh.  
"But that . . .that is impossible."

"Which is Alecto?" Arthur looked around to find the boy they were after.  
"I am Alecto." A voice rang out from atop the wall.

Dawn looked up to see a boy maybe three or four years younger than her standing beside a Roman woman. They came all this way for a teenager? Why?

"Alecto is my son." All friendliness disappeared from Marius' face. "And everything we have is here in the land given to use by the Pope of Rome."

"Well, you're about to give it to the Saxons." Lancelot said, speaking harshly. Apparently, he like this guy as much as Dawn did.

"They're invading from the North." Arthur added. Fear came into Marius' eyes. Followed closely by indignation.

"Then Rome will send an Army." He said defiantly.

"They have. Us." Arthur replied. "We leave as soon as you're packed."

"I refuse to leave." Marius said quietly.

There was a heavy silence in the air, and even as Marius spoke, his family came through the gates. No one moved, and the knights exchanged heavy looks.

"Go back to work! All of you!" Marius shouted.

The guards started shouting similar orders, and dispersed through the crowd. They shoved the peasants roughly. Dawn felt anger begin to bubble through her blood. Was this guy a complete jackass? Didn't he know the Saxons were not to be messed with? They were notoriously blood-thirsty and tended to wipe out weaker people. Did the idiot think they would pause at killing a fat Roman?

Arthur watched, his own anger rising at this sight. He dismounted and strode quickly over to Marius. The coward stepped back. Dawn snickered to herself. You never did that.

"If I fail to bring you and your son back, my men can never leave this land." He paused for only a second, his voice becoming deadlier by the syllable. "So you're coming with me if I have to tie you to my horse and drag you all the way to Hadrian's Wall myself." He paused, calmed his voice. "My lord. Lady, my knights are hungry."

Marius' wife said nothing. She gave Marius a questioning look, and touched her hand to his forearm. He turned to her.

"Go." She quickly made her way back through the gate. Marius held Arthur's gaze for a moment longer, before turning to follow his wife. "Come!"

Arthur looked over at the addition Dawn had noticed earlier. It must have struck him as odd as well. Although Dawn didn't really think it had anything to do with the construction style for him. He turned back to the knights.

"Come. Let us go, hm?" Bors said, gesturing. Dawn was surprised as how soft he could make his voice. She certainly hadn't been expecting that from the gruff looking man.

Arthur noticed the spit with the weird meat on it. He gritted his teeth and pulled the sword from his saddle. He took long, measured steps over to it. Several of the knights sighed heavily. Bors sighed, and quickly drew his own sword. Dagonet was silent. Dawn watched, curious as to what he was doing. One of the peasants came alongside him and began chattering.

"Sir, you're famous. You're Arthur, aren't you?" When Arthur didn't answer him, he continued. "I'm Ganis. I'm a good fighter and I'm smart. I'd serve you proudly."

Bors got down from his horse as well, making to follow Arthur. He hadn't gotten far when a heavily accented man in brown monk robed grabbed his arm.

"Are you from Rome?" He asked. Bors stared coldly into his eyes

"From hell." He said gruffly. The monk backed away, eyeing the other knights cautiously. That couldn't be good.

"Sir." Ganis tried again.

"Who is this man?" Arthur demanded. Dawn's head whirled around. That was a person?  
"He's our village elder." Ganis replied.

"What is this punishment for?" He asked. When there was no reply he yelled, "Answer me!"

"He defied our master, Marius." Ganis supplied, pointing at the Villa. "Most of the food we grow is sent out by sea to be sold. He asked that we keep a little more for ourselves, that's all." He paused, his voice rising angrily. "My ass has been snappin' at the grass I'm so hungry! You're from Rome. Is it true that Marius is a spokesman for God and that it's a sin to defy him?"

Oh yeah, this Marius guy was definitely of the evil variety. Dawn had the strongest urge to drop kick the man. Add that as another reason she hated Rome. Dawn saw Alecto in the crowd watching Arthur's reaction. What would he say to this? Dawn had no idea what kind of man the real Arthur was. He could totally agree with Marius. Arthur looked at the hanging man and turned back to Ganis, Excalibur pointed at him.

"I tell you now." Ganis stepped back, but Arthur continued. "Marius is not of God. And you, all of you, were free from your first breath!" He shouted. With that, he hefted the sword and cut through the chains that held the poor man up.

The crowd gasped and jumped back. Dawn felt her jaw drop. So Arthur's valor and honor wasn't all made up. She felt a silly twinge of pride at that. Buffy would like this guy. Too bad he was dead in her time.

"Help this man." He ordered. When no one moved, he yelled louder. "Help him!"

Several villagers stepped forward, helping the man to his feet. Arthur turned his attention back to the crowd of villagers.

"Now hear me. A vast and terrible army is coming this way. They will show no mercy, spare no one. Those of you who are able should gather your things and begin to move south towards Hadrian's Wall. Those unable shall come with us. You," He turned to Ganis, "Serve me now. Get these people ready." Arthur strode past Alecto, making his way back to the knights.

"Right, you heard him. You go grab enough food and water for the journey. Let's get a hurry on, else we're all dead!" Ganis yelled.

Dawn slipped off the horse with Dagonet's help. Her legs welcomed the stretch. It had been nearly an hour since Arthur's speech. She couldn't help staring at that little lean-to of a building. There was something wrong in there, she was sure of it. It felt - evil.

Dagonet watched Dawn's gaze, followed it with his own. He moved to stand behind her. She must have felt his presence, and turned to meet him. He noticed her hand straying to her sword. He held a hand to his heart.

"Sorry, I'm a little jumpy." She sighed, looking over her shoulder at the building. The monks from earlier were bricking up the doorway. What could need such precautions at this time? Better question, was what were they sealing inside of it?

"Precaution is necessary." He replied.

She looked up at him. He was a tall man. One of the tallest knights in fact. She studied his face for a moment. He had a long scar that ran from just below his left eye to the middle of his cheek. He wasn't a pretty boy, but he was good looking. He had an honest face, and was pretty hot when he smiled. Dawn smiled up at him.

"How'd you get that?" She asked.

"Battle." His face became blank and cold.

"Someone die because of it?" She prodded gently.

"A fellow knight." Dagonet knew he shouldn't be speaking of such things he'd long buried.

"I've got a couple of scars like that." She faintly rubbed at her abdomen. Dawn remembered that day so vividly. It was painful to remember, even now that Buffy was alive again and had been for nearly five years. "Everybody has scars. Some are just harder to see." She tilted her head up at him. "Makes you look -"

"Fierce, frightening?" Dagonet murmured softly.

"Nope. Distinguished. Handsome. Hot." She smirked. Was she really flirting with him? Dagonet looked at her oddly. Maybe he was thinking the same thing.

The guards shouted more orders at monks, drawing her attention back to them. Her brow furrowed in confusion.

"What is it?" Dagonet asked.

"There's something - wrong with that. Marius' is up to something, and if I know his type, it's not a good thing." She murmured. "Whatever it is, it's evil. And I really hate evil."

Tristan halted his horse in front of Arthur's and began giving his report.

"They have flanked us to the east. They're coming form the south, trying to cut off our escape. They'll be here before nightfall." He said, catching his breath.

"How many?" Arthur asked.

"An entire army." Tristan replied.

"And the only way out is to the south?" Tristan shook his head.

"East. There is a trail heading east across the mountains. It means we have to cross behind Saxon lines, but that's the one we should take."

Tristan glanced around at the busy village, taking in the sight of it before turning back to Arthur.

"Arthur, who are all these people?"

"They're coming with us." Tristan gave a small, disbelieving laugh.

"Then we'll never make it."

Distant drums sounded off in the distance. They warned of the Saxon threat, and the air was heavy with fear. Dagonet helped Dawn back onto his horse and joined her atop it. The rest of the knights started at the sound. The villagers paused in their work. Even the monks stopped to listen.

"Come on, get back to work!" The guards yelled at them.

This caught Arthur's attention. He stared at them for a few seconds before drawing Excalibur and dismounting. He made his way across the grass, snow lightly falling around him, his red cloak billowing in the wind. The guards approached him, hoping to stop him. _Obviously they hadn't seen the little performance earlier_, Dawn thought. The other knights flanked him.

"Move." They started backing away. "Move." His voice got louder. "Move!" He shouted.

Arthur turned his attention to the monks. They finally paused in their work, dropping the stones to the ground.

"What is this?" He gestured to the door.

"You cannot go in there." The monk answered, stepping forward. "No one goes in there. This place is forbidden." Arthur moved them aside with his sword.

"What are you doing? Stop this!" Marius cried, striding forward, only to be blocked by Bors. Arthur touched the stones.

"Arthur, we have no time." Lancelot said.  
"Do you not hear the drums?" Galahad questioned.

Arthur paid them no heed and turned to face his knights. He sought out Dagonet's face.

"Dagonet." He gestured to the doorway.

Dagonet lifted himself from the saddle, as to not knock Dawn off as well. He took his axe from the saddle and made his way to the doorway. With three powerful strokes, most of the stones were now in a pile of rubble. He kicked at the bolt. Dawn slipped off the saddle once more. Arthur turned to the guards.

"Key." Dawn's eyes went wide for a second, before she realized he wasn't talking to her.

"It is locked. From the inside." The guard replied. Arthur nodded to Dagonet, who took his axe to the door itself, finally kicking it open.

Lancelot dismounted his horse, drawing one of his blades. Arthur took the torch from the wall beside the door and gestured inward with it. He made his way forward, with Dagonet behind him. Gawain came behind the two monks.

"You, you . . Go" When they whimpered, he shoved them forward. "Move!"

Dawn slipped in behind them. The other knights were too busy to notice her, as they moved their horses to guard the doors. Arthur, Dagonet, Lancelot, the monks, Gawain, and Dawn made their way down the dark tunnel. It smelled of decay and musty water. She drew the sword from her side. It could be a master vampire or a demon down there. They liked these creepy kind of places in her time, logically they would in this time.

"Gawain." Lancelot said, handing him another torch.

There was chanting wafting it's way up a circular stone staircase. It was a Latin prayer. As they exited the staircase, a lanky, greasy, balding monk intercepted them.

"Who are these defilers of the Lord's temple?" He demanded, snarling at them. Ok, so he wasn't a vampire. Didn't mean he wasn't a demon.

"Out of the way." Lancelot advanced on him, shoving him back into the room he'd exited.

Lancelot entered the room, slowly taking it in. Arthur knelt at the closest cage. Inside of it was the long-dead body of a man. Lancelot turned to face him.

"The work of your god." He said, nodding his head. "Is this how he answers your prayers?"

"See if there's any still alive." Arthur said to the other knights.

Dagonet made his way over to a small ledge with circular cages shut down. Arthur peered into more of the wall cages. Dawn felt her stomach rumble at the smell and anger build up at the fact that these people had been tortured to death. Lancelot broke the chains on the first cage, and peered down into it.

"How dare you set foot in this holy place?" The monk from outside yelled, pulling on Lancelot. He reared up and slammed his sword into the monks stomach. Dawn flinched at the sight of this. She'd killed demons and vampires before, but never humans, and never that savagely. Her pity for the monk didn't last very long.

"There was a man of God." The greasy one admonished.

"Not my god!" Lancelot yelled.

Dagonet opened the first two cages, but it was no use. They were both dead. Arthur called back to the men.

"This one's dead."

"By this smell, they are all dead." Gawain replied, stepping forward. He turned back to the remaining monks. "And you. You even move, you join him." He gestured to the dead monk on the floor.

Dagonet's third cage held a small blond haired boy. He was no more than eight and looked completely frightened.

"Arthur!" He hefted the child out and placed him on the ledge. The boy backed away skittishly. Dagonet leaned forward. "You must not fear me." He said. The boy looked back at the chamber he'd been trapped in, as if he couldn't believe he was free.

Dawn's eyes widened in anger. He was just a little boy! How could someone have put him in this hell hole? She advanced on the monks, who backed away from her slightly. She knew there was a reason she hated men of the cloth. Before she'd thought it was just Caleb, but these assholes were just as sadistic as he had been.

"He's just a little boy! How could you do that to him?" She spat at them. Dagonet turned to her then.

"What are you doing here?" He demanded. "Get out of here."

"You sadistic pricks." She muttered, advancing on them.

"Gawain." Dagonet called, motioning to her.

Lancelot and Arthur inspected the last cage. Inside a young woman sat huddled in a corner. Arthur handed Lancelot the torch and broke the lock open with Excalibur. Gawain pulled her away from them just as Lancelot led Arthur up the stairs. In his arms was the woman. The torch was doused as they passed through the doorway.

"Water! Give me some water!" Arthur yelled to his knights as he set her on the ground.

Dagonet followed with the boy in his arms. Gawain followed with the monks in front of him and a seething Dawn behind him. Horton raced over to Arthur first, handing him a water skin. He then moved on to the boy. The girl choked on the first sips of water, having been so long deprived of it. The wife of Marius made her way over to help. Dagonet helped the boy drink. Horton stared at his arm.

"His arm is broken." He murmured. "And his family?" He asked Dagonet. The man only shook his head.

Tristan sheathed his sword after looking at the girl, and spoke.

"She's a Woad."

"I'm a Roman officer." Arthur said to the girl. "You're safe now. You're safe."

"Stop what you are doing!" Marius yelled.

"What is this madness?" Arthur demanded, rising to his feet.

"They are all pagans here!"

"So are we." Galahad retorted.

"They refuse to do the task God has set for them! They must die as an example!"

"As if that isn't the biggest load of insane troll-logic I've ever heard!" Dawn cried, forgetting herself and where she was for a moment. It didn't matter, as Arthur went on yelling at the same time.

"You mean they refused to be your serfs!"

"You are a Roman. You understand. And you are a Christian." He turned to his wife. "You! You kept her alive!" He struck his wife hard across the face.

That was the last straw. Arthur turned to the man and punched him hard in the face. _About damn time_, Dawn thought. The Roman fell backwards as Arthur reached for Excalibur. One of the soldiers yelled out to Marius.

"My lord!" They cried as they raced to help him.

"No! No, stop!" He yelled to them. He spoke to Arthur next. "When we get to the wall you will be punished for this heresy." He threatened. Arthur grabbed him by his tunic.

"Perhaps I should kill you now and seal my fate."

"I was willing to die with them." The greasy monk spoke. Dawn had had enough. She hit him hard across the cheek. The stupid man fell to the ground, but that didn't shut him up. "Yes, to lead them to their rightful place. It is God's wish that these sinners be sacrificed. Only the can their souls be saved."

"You don't know the meaning of 'shut the hell up' do you?" She gritted through her teeth. "That punch was meant to get that though your thick sadistic skull."

Arthur stared at the man with all sincerity as he spoke. "Then I shall grant his wish." He turned to the villagers. "Wall them back up."

"Arthur." Tristan said, leaning forward on his horse.

"I said wall them up!" He shouted.

"Don't you see it is the will of God that these sinners be sacrificed?" The monk whined at Arthur. The villagers moved forward, shoving him back. "Unhand me, defil. . .They're sinners!"

"Get in there!"

Dagonet motioned to Dawn as he carried the boy to the cart. The woman was also loaded into it, along with the wife of Marius. Dawn climbed in the back and sat beside Dagonet and the boy.

"Do you know anything about healing, lady?" He asked.

"If you mean can I splint broken bones, then yeah. Half a year of field training." She muttered, thinking back to the very overcrowded house in Sunnydale.

"You should not have gone down there." He said quietly.

"Trust me, I've seen worse." She looked down at the little boy. "Well, maybe not as horrific as this."

"You should not have hit that man."

"That wasn't a man, Dagonet." She looked into his eyes. "He stopped being a man a long time ago."

A/N: Seems as a good a place to stop as any. This is the longest chapter I think I've written to date. 10 pages. my fingers hurt. This is going to be at least six or seven chapters long. . .too much stuff to cram into five chapters. How am I doing so far?


	4. 4 Into the Woods We Go

Title: Protector Of The Weak

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 to R (for language and some mild naughtiness)

Disclaimer: Not mine. Joss owns all things BtVS, and somebody else owns K.A.

Spoilers: Season 7, and the movie _King Arthur_

Summary: Overheard conversations, mixed signals, and bedtime. And on the home front .

A/N: Happy Valentine's day! What better way to celebrate a massacre than with a new chapter? I have a thing about hands, as I mentioned in the previous chapter. I like guys with nice hands, and Dawn has picked up my quirky trait.

Thank you for all of the very helpful reviews. As to the pairing, well, it's still D/D. I'm not sure if it'll change yet.

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4. Into the Woods We Go

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2005

Rupert Giles combed the area twice more. Where could she have gone? Dawn knew by now not look for trouble, but she seemed to find it anyway. He cleaned his glasses and turned to the young dispatcher.

"She was here last?"

"Yes sir, said this quadrant was cleared and that it would take her a half an hour to return."

"And she didn't?" He said slowly.

"No, sir. Miss Summers called in, asking for Miss Dawn. We assumed she had just gone to her quarters." Anthony St. Clair replied.

"Without checking in?"

"We - we're new, sir." The young man stuttered.

"Search the area twice over, see if you can find her." Giles flipped the cell phone open. Buffy wasn't going to be pleased. But right now he needed Willow here. She was the only one of them who could find Dawn. He prayed that it was not too late for his young charge.

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467

Dagonet watched her from the corner of his eye. She pushed the hood of her shirt down and brushed the strands of hair from her eyes. Nimble fingers undid the sword belt at her hip, and she laid it to the side. She scooted towards the Woad woman, who visibly flinched from her.

"It's okay. I won't hurt you. I'm not like those - " Dawn felt her throat fill with bile. "I am not evil."

"She won't let you touch her." Fulcinia replied. "She is skittish."

"Yeah, well torture chambers tend to do that to people." Dawn snapped. It wasn't the nicest thing to say, but she was angry. "If I could have - grr." She finished angrily, turning back to coax the Woad woman out of her shell.

"You call her lady. Why does she not dress like a lady?" Fulcinia asked Dagonet quietly.

"It's freezing here, I'm not wearing any toga dress." Dawn replied, cutting off whatever Dagonet's reply might have been. "Her hand - she's keeping it close to her. It's probably broken, like the boy's."

"His name is Lucan." Fulcinia replied.

"Why would someone do this to another human being?" Dawn demanded, her eyes glazing over with tears. "Why? What did they ever do to deserve this?"

"Marius -" Fulcinia tried to speak.

"Is a bastard! He deserves to be castrated and - and hung on a rack." Bitterness seeped through her voice. "He -"

"That is enough." Dagonet boomed, startling Dawn out of her rant. "You are upsetting not only yourself, but those around you."

Tears streamed down her cheek as she looked back at the girl. Her large eyes watched her cautiously, almost in a calculating way. A warrior's eyes. Dawn gave her a teary smile.

"Men are a pain in the ass." She muttered. The girl gave her a knowing smile. "You should let me look at that hand - it, it could be a bad break -" The smile was gone, and the had pulled more firmly to her chest. "Let someone look at it." Dawn urged.

"Lady, we need your assistance." Dagonet called.

"Coming. And quit with all the lady business. It's Dawn." Dawn jerked her head toward Fulcinia, "Besides, she's the real lady around here."

Gawain and Galahad rode near the head of the train of people. Tristan led, as he knew the path. The two youngest knights spoke quietly.

"How did she get down there?" Galahad demanded.

"Followed me down, I suppose." Gawain pondered something for a moment. "She has fairly decent punch."

"Are we sure she is not a Woad?" Galahad cast a glance back at the wagon she rode in. "She quickly played the hero for them."

"No, she hasn't the markings, like the other one." Gawain replied.

"She is odd. I don't trust her." Galahad said viciously, riding farther ahead.

"Who do you trust?" Gawain snorted, turning his horse back.

Dawn looked down at the woman behind her. Fulcinia and Dagonet tended to Lucan. She'd already helped set a split for his arm. She'd had to look away when Dagonet had popped the bone back into place. She'd always hated when Buffy or one of the other slayers had done that around her. Luckily, it hadn't happened too often. With the supplies they had, she figured that they would know how to use them better than her. She was used to sterile bandages and modern medicine.

It struck her then. How the hell was she going to get back home? She couldn't stay stuck in the past. This wasn't _Kate Leopold._ She wasn't Meg Ryan, and Dagonet wasn't Hugh Jackman. She gulped down the lump in her throat. He was pretty good looking. He was brave, handsome, extremely gentle and protective. She'd only met one other man like that before, and she'd had a crush on him for a long time. He reminded her of Xander, but without the jokes. She watched his hands as he checked Lucan over for any other injuries. Those very nice, big, strong hands that she could -_Stop it, Dawn_. She mentally yelled at herself.

"When we stop, we should bathe them." Fulcinia said, startling Dawn out of her thoughts. Unfortunately, they only gave her even worse visualizations. Ones involving a big bubble bath and a bare-chested Dagonet. "And dress them properly."

"She's right. These rags won't keep them very warm." Dawn replied, shaking her head. "Someone needs to set her arm." She nodded down to the girl. "She won't let me see it. I don't think she trusts me."

"She will let no one look at it." Fulcinia sighed. "Nor tell us where it hurts."

"Talk with her. Perhaps she will open up." Dagonet suggested. "Look for other injuries."

"Sure." Dawn rolled her eyes, but sat beside her once more. "Hi. I know you won't let me see your hand, because you don't trust me too yet. My name is Dawn Summers. I don't know much about your people, but I know what they did to you was wrong. No one deserves that kind of -" She shook her head. "I guess I could tell you about myself."

Her voice seemed to fill the cart as she spoke. She talked about her mother's death, her father leaving. Dagonet found his ears tuned to every word she spoke.

"They may not be blood kin, but they're pretty damn close." She whispered. "We've lost too many." She thought of Spike, Anya, Tara, her mother. They had been her family.

Outside, snow trickled down. Arthur sat atop his horse, looking down at the snow filled valley. Behind him, the carts and villagers moved onward along the path. He turned to find the cart carrying the Woad girl and child. He could hear Dawn's voice speaking, but could not make out the words. The girl watched him silently, but closed her eyes the moment they caught his. He didn't have very long to think on this, as he saw Lancelot approach him.

"We're moving too slow. The girl's not going to make it, and neither is the boy. The family we can protect, but we're wasting our time with all these people." He hissed.

"We're not leaving them." Arthur simply stated. Lancelot's approach was not working.

"If the Saxons find us, we will have to fight."

"Then save your anger for them." Arthur replied.

"Is this Rome's quest or Arthur's?" Lancelot demanded. Arthur held his gaze for a moment before looking away. He would not give an answer.

Lancelot made his way back to his section of the train. This quest would get them all killed. First the girl in the woods, who didn't seem to know her place, and then villagers, and now this Woad girl and boy. Arthur's heart was far too large. Lancelot sincerely hoped it didn't get them killed at the end of the day.

Dawn felt the cart shake. She jumped a little bit. She hadn't remembered falling asleep. She'd been talking about home. And then Fulcinia had started humming. It had been very relaxing. The girl beside her seemed to be asleep as well. Dawn couldn't remember if that was a good or bad thing to do.

"Give her some water when she wakes." Dagonet said quietly.

"Yeah." The cart seemed emptier than she remembered. "Where's the lady?"

"She's up by the horses, calling Arthur."

"Oh." That meant, with the exception of the two sleeping victims in the cart, they were pretty much alone.

"Your home sounds very peaceful."

"Sunnydale?" She cocked her head to the side. "It had it's moments."

"Will you return there after we reach the Wall?"

"I can't." Dawn lowered her head. "It doesn't exist anymore."

"What happened?"

"There were - caves beneath the entire - village. There was an earthquake, and the caves collapsed." She replied.

"Arthur comes." Fulcinia said, making her way back to Lucan's side. The girl stirred beside Dawn, opening her eyes and sitting up.

"Arthur." Dagonet acknowledged the other man.

"How is he?"

"He burns." Dagonet didn't take his eyes from the child. "Brave boy." He moved so Arthur could pass.

Arthur nodded at Dawn. She expected him to ask her the same question, so she answered before he even spoke.

"Her left arm's hurt. She wouldn't let me see it though." She scooted closer to Fulcinia, but her eyes were drawn to the pair. There was something there.

Arthur knelt beside her, but the girl scooted away from him, mimicking Dawn's movement. He gently pulled her hand away from her chest, she resisted at first. Dawn hoped she would just let him look at it already. He unwrapped the cloth around her hand. Her fingers were bent at odd angles, and Dawn felt her stomach roll again. He was going to set it, she just knew it.

"Some of your fingers are out of place." Arthur said in a low voice. "I have to push them back. " He took her hand in both of his, and continued. "If I don't do this, there's a chance you may never use them again."

She sat up higher as he cupped her hand. Dawn looked away, not wanted to see this. Hearing it would be bad enough. Dagonet caught her eyes, and urged her to keep quiet. It would only make the girl suffer more. Dawn pursed her lips together and focused on Dagonet's face. The cracking and pained cries only sounded louder. _Focus on Dagonet_. She urged herself. _Arthur's only doing what needs to be done_.

Arthur held her for a second as the pain washed over her. When he made to leave, she grabbed onto him with her uninjured hand. She stared up at him.

"They tortured me." She whimpered. "With machines."

When Arthur said nothing, she leaned heavily against him, and continued.

"To make me ell them things that . . . that I didn't know to begin with. And then I heard your voice in the dark." She looked up at him, pushing herself up. "I am Guinevere. You are Arthur . . .of the Knights of the Great Wall."

"I am." He replied.

"The famous Briton who kills his own people." Neither said anything more, and weak from the pain, Guinevere closed her eyes.

"Watch over her, lady." Arthur said, after setting her down on the skins. He turned to Dawn. "Make sure she has water and carefully wrap her hand again."

"Yes." Dawn nodded, dumbstruck by fact that Guinevere sat huddled in a ball of pain. So much for that legend. Then something occurred to her. "You can talk!" She hissed at Guinevere. "You had me all tra-la-la-ing in babbleville while you understood everything I was saying. Don't you know the cardinal rule of being a girl? We stick together and trust one another. Otherwise, Fulcinia would have let you die. It makes it easier to gang up on pig headed guys that way." Dawn huffed. "Just fabulous."

Guinevere didn't know what to make of the young babbling woman. She stared at her for a second. Dawn realized what the other girl probably hadn't followed half of what she was saying. She let out an aggravated grunt. First the legendary knights, who turn out to be just regular soldiers, then Guinevere as a prisoner, what was next? Merlin as Arthur's prized cook? She bolted upright. Merlin the Magician.

"Guinevere, I know you're in agonizing pain, but I have one tiny little question."

"What is it?" She asked weakly.

"Is there a man by the name of Merlin here?"

"Why do you ask?" Guinevere asked guardedly.

"I'm gonna take that as a yes." Dawn rolled her eyes. "Is he truly a magician?"

"He is the leader of the Woads." Dagonet replied instead. "He has no power but that of his men."

"Oh." Dawn sighed. _Damn. There goes that shot._

"Do not tax her." Dagonet said.

"I'm not taxing her. I asked one question. One that she said a total of seven words about." Hurt welled up in her chest. He was treating her like a baby. "I'm going up to sit by the horses."

It was childish, she knew this. But she really didn't give two flying fucks about it. She'd was fed up with 400 A.D. It was diving her nuts. She wanted more than anything to be safe at the slayer resort or even in the Sex-o-palooza that was Buffy's apartment. She wrapped the cloak around her and let the angry puff of breath out.

Jeans were not meant to be worn in the extreme cold, even if they were made with heavy material. She shivered, but welcomed the fresh air. She pulled the hood over her head and watched the snow fall. She was angry and had no way to vent that anger. Normally, she would work out, practicing the drills Giles' said all of the watchers must know. Other times, she'd blared old Bon Jovi CD's and sang at the top of her lungs. And other times she'd write down all of her frustration in her journals. She doubted anyone would take out the time to spar with her, CD's didn't work, and she didn't have anything to write on. She started humming, saying lyrics under her breath. She bopped her head along to the tune.

"_These excuses how they've served me so well. They've kept me safe they've kept me stuck. They've kept me locked in my own cell. These excuses how they're so familiar. They've kept me blocked they've kept me small. They've kept me safe inside my shell._"

"What is that you sing?" Gawain asked, bringing his horse beside her, scaring her. She jabbed her fist out, catching him in the chest. "Oof."

"God, warn a girl before you sneak up on her like that, Goldilocks." She gasped.

"I merely asked a question, I didn't try to bed you!" Gawain snapped, urging his horse onward.

"Well, excuse me." She stuck her tongue out at his back.

"What was the song you sing?" A voice said from behind her. She instinctively popped her elbow back, catching Dagonet in the stomach.

"Oh, god, Dagonet! I'm so sorry!" She turned around to face him. "What is it with you knights and that stealthy thing you do? And you really should have expected it, I mean I did just hit him."

"It's all right, little one. I am fine." Dagonet gave her a small smile. "What was it?"

"A song about bad choices." She blushed a little at that smile. "In my country, there is a famous - bard, who sings this." She didn't really know if that was the right term for it. "She is paid a lot of coin to sing her songs."

"She?"

"Yeah. Men and women are equals in my land. Women work the same types of jobs men do."

"Do they go to war as well?"

"Of course. Some are even great warriors. My sister is a great warrior." She looked out at the mountains.

"And you?"

"I'm - I can fight, if that's what you're asking." Dawn peered up at him. He had the nicest eyes. She blinked. "I can shoot a bow, handle a sword, throw a stiletto dagger and handle a stake." She absently patted the dagger strapped to her thigh. She'd forgotten it was there. It had been Xander's birthday gift to her. It had been blessed by a shaman in Africa. She smiled. "Plus I can stop an attacker about twenty ways without using a weapon."

"So you are a warrior?"

"No, I'm a scholar. I dig into the secrets of the pasts, learn different languages, and find answers to riddles." She sighed again. "Kicking ass is just a perk."

"I am sure you are quiet capable." He peered up at the sky, then back at her paling lips. "You should come in."

"Yeah." He gave her a funny look, and she felt her heartbeat quicken. "I - I better go check on Guinevere. She needs water." Dawn coughed, standing to walk around him. The cart must have hit another rough patch, because her step faltered. His hands went around her waist, supporting her.

"Are you -"

"Th-thanks, I'm good." She could hardly breathe, but she was good.

"Don't forget -" He handed her the water skin.

"Wouldn't want her to get dehydrated." Dawn said, taking it from his hands.

Guinevere watched the two speak. It was odd. She had not expected to see the gentle exchange between the pair. She was odd, this girl. Her style was pounded into her, forged into her. She looked as if a strong wind would knock her over.

"Water. To hydrate you." Dawn muttered.

"Thank you."

"What?"

"Thank you." Guinevere smirked at her. "Did you expect me to be ungrateful?"

"I expected you to say nothing." Dawn snorted.

"Is he your man?" Guinevere nodded toward Dagonet.

"My what?" Dawn snapped, staring at her, pulling her gaze from the slope of Dagonet's back. "No, I've only known him for two days."

"You act as if you are lovers." Guinevere tipped her head to the side, taking a long sip. "You asked after Merlin."

"We do not. What?"

"You asked after Merlin." She said in a quiet voice. "Why did you?"

"I heard he was a magician. I thought he could send me to my home."

"What do you need magic for? Can you not take a boat or a horse?"

"No. It's hundreds of years from here." Dawn said bitterly. "No horse can make that trip."

"He knows only the healing arts, and the arts of war." Guinevere looked her in the eye. "He cannot help you."

"I was afraid you'd say that." Dawn smiled sadly, her eyes drawn back to Dagonet.

The Saxon leader, Cerdic gave the order to wall the monks back up into the torture chamber. He would find this Roman family, and he would kill the knight.

"Burn it." He ordered.

"Come on, stinky." Dawn said to Guinevere, an hour later.

"Excuse me?"

"You smell." Dawn said slowly. "Go sit up at the front of the cart, blow the stink off of you. I'll come with, and you can gossip or listen to me gossip, whichever works for you."

"Will you prattle on about Dagonet?" Guinevere whispered.

"No." Dawn rolled her eyes.

"Where are you going?" Dagonet asked.

"Front of the cart so stinky here can be exposed to the fresh air. Don't worry, she'll be given plenty of water and wrapped in the skin." Dawn sighed. She looked down at the sleeping boy. "How's he doing?"

"Better, the fever has broken." Dagonet smiled down at the child and Dawn felt her heart do that thing again.

Two knights rode in front of the carriage. Dawn recognized one of them as Arthur. The other was curly haired, so that left Lancelot or Galahad.

"You've not ridden with them long?" Guinevere asked, staring ahead of her.

"Two days. They were attacked by Woads, and I fell into the middle of it." She replied.

"There are many tales of these knights."

"You don't know the half of it." Dawn sighed.

Arthur looked back at them then, and Guinevere stared him down. The other knight followed his actions, and revealed himself as Lancelot. Dawn frowned as he spurred his horse forward. She wondered if they were already headed to love triangle central. Arthur pulled himself onto the other side of the train to speak to Guinevere.

"My father told me great tales of you." She said to Arthur's back.

"Really? And what did you hear?"

"Fairy tales. The kind you hear about people so brave, so selfless, that they can't be real. Arthur and his knights. A leader both Briton and Roman. And yet you choose your allegiance to Rome. To those who take what does not belong to them. That same Rome that took your men from their homeland."

"Uh-oh." Dawn murmured. Guinevere's voice was getting an acidy streak to it. That couldn't be good.

"Listen, lady, do not pretend you know anything about me or my men." Arthur replied.

"How many Britons have you killed?"

"As many as tried to kill me. It's the natural state of any man to want to live."

"Animals live! It's a natural state of any man to want to live free in their own country." She paused, lowering her voice. "I belong to this land. Where do you belong, Arthur?"

Arthur didn't reply. Dawn looked back between the two of them. She sighed. Sexual tension you could cut with a knife. He looked back at Guinevere, but still did not answer her question.

"How's your hand?"

"I'll live, I promise you." She smirked at him. "Is there nothing about my land that appeals to your heart? Your own father married a Briton. Even he must have found something to his liking."

Arthur did not look back at her again. He merely kicked his horse into a gallop. Dawn poked Guinevere hard on the shoulder.

"What?"

"You're sick and twisted, girlie." Dawn sighed.

"Tell me something about you, Dawn." Guinevere said.

"What?"

"Why would you whisper all your thoughts and fears to a person you weren't even sure could understand you?"

"What do you mean?"

"You spoke of your home to a stranger, why?"

"To keep you from going into shock from your wounds."

"You didn't even know if I would really hear you."

"It didn't matter." Dawn paused. "Let me ask you something."

"What?"

"Why do you goad Arthur? I mean, do you like him?"

"He pulled me from that hole."

"Then why goad him?" Guinevere didn't answer her.

Dead bodies lined the path they took. Dawn and Guinevere stared out in silence at the seer number of them. Dawn had to turn away. Guinevere stared on. Dagonet motioned for Dawn to stay with Lucan, as he slipped from the cart.

"Saxons." Arthur said flatly to Lancelot.

They called the train to a halt, and the knights gathered around Arthur at the center of the train. Once they were together, Arthur spoke.

"We'll sleep here. Take shelter in those trees. Tristan."

"You wanna go out again? Yeah." Tristan spoke to his hawk, sending her out into the sky.

"Looks like we're sleeping here. On the ground." Dawn muttered.

"Where'd you sleep the night before?" Guinevere retorted.

"On Dagonet's horse." She replied without thinking. "I mean, in his arms - no, wait that makes me sound like a skanky ho."

Guinevere peered out of the cart. One rider remained in front of it. Lancelot.

"'Tis a beautiful country, is it not?" He glanced over his shoulder.

"If you say so."

"Guinevere!" Dawn hissed.

"And where do you come from that compares? The Black Sea?" She questioned. "This is heaven for me."

"I don't believe in heaven. I've been living in this hell." Lancelot cocked his head. "But if you represent what heaven is, then take me there."

"Are you _kidding _me?" Dawn muttered to herself. Was he even for real? This - this was the big love triangle that people had been writing about? Clever innuendos?

"Rain and snow at once." Lancelot leaned forward. "A bad omen."

All but one of the knights bedded down for the evening. Tristan was out. Dagonet had been abruptly removed from the cart, by Fulcinia's strong arm. Lucan was scrubbed clean of the muck with hot water. When he was sufficiently dried and dressed in warm clothing, he was handed out to Dagonet.

Dagonet had not spent all his time puttering about. He built a small fire and made a covering on the ground for himself and the boy. He set the child on his saddle and covered him in his heavy cloth outer wear. Dag set his sword in a place that was easily accessible. To his side, Dagonet heard the low mutterings of Marius and his guards. He would keep his eye on them.

Dawn was not having such an easy time inside the cart. Fulcinia insisted she clean up as well. She relented and washed her face and arms while the Roman woman washed Guinevere.

"Put this on, Dawn." Fulcinia handed her a crimson red dress. "It is the smallest I have. She will wear the blue."

"You've actually been outside, haven't you?" Dawn demanded.

"Dress. Now. You cannot be mistaken for a man."

"You're joking, right?"

"No. We will keep your other clothing safe, but you freeze in that as it is. And it smells." Fulcinia replied, using Dawn's own remark to get her.

"You're an evil woman, Fulcinia."

Dawn was already out of her shirt and sweater, pulling the dress on to conceal her bra. What would the woman think of it? She didn't really want to find out. It would be hard enough explaining the zippers. She pulled the loose red dress on.

"When I am done with Guinevere's hair I will set yours." Fulcinia clucked her tongue at Dawn's tangled mane of hair.

"We had a watcher." Guinevere said quietly to Dawn, while Fulcinia fetched her dress.

"A what?"

"The knight. Lancelot." Guinevere stared at the lump on her leg. "What is that?"

"Lancelot was watching you bathe? Huh?" Dawn stared down at her leg, glancing about her cautiously, she hiked up the hemline. "Dagger. A birthday gift." She dropped the skirt.

"Here it is." She held the dress for Guinevere.

As soon as bath time was over, Fulcinia asked Dagonet to empty the basin of water. He motioned to Lucan, and Dawn sat beside the little boy. It was strange how quickly she'd fallen into this pattern of life. Three days. She'd been there for three days. Movement caught her eye and she watched Guinevere sneak away. Dawn was torn between following the girl or staying with Lucan. Dagonet returned then, so she didn't have to choose.

"Where are you going?"

"Guinevere went down that way. I don't want her to get lost." Dawn said honestly.

After a short search, she found Guinevere standing near a large tree. She wasn't alone. At first she thought she had gone over to Arthur. She was wrong. Not wanting to be seen, but wanting to hear, Dawn ducked behind a tree trunk before Lancelot looked up.

"What was it like, your home?" She asked him.

"We sacrificed goats, drank their blood, danced naked round fires." Lancelot replied.

Dawn got a very naughty visual. She shuddered. Naked Dagonet. Lancelot laughed. Guinevere gave him a searching look, and his laugh faded. He stood to face her.

"What I do remember. . .Home. . ." He couldn't seem to find the right words to describe it. "Oceans of grass from horizon to horizon, further than you can ride. The sky, bigger than you can imagine. No boundaries."

"Some people would call that freedom. That's what we fight for - our land, our people. The right to choose our own destiny." Guinevere paused for a beat. "So you see, Lancelot, we are much alike, you and I."

He looked at her, silently. Trying to understand what was passing between them. She strode forward.

"And when you return home, will you take a wife, have sons?"

"I have killed to many sons. What right do I have to my own?"

"No family, no religion. Do you believe in anything at all?" Lancelot said nothing for a moment, but sighed deeply.

"I would have left you and the boy there to die." He turned and walked away from her.

"Guinevere!" Dawn hissed at her. The other woman turned around to face her. "What was that?"

"I needed an answer."

"Well? Did you get what you wanted to hear?" Dawn demanded. Guinevere looked over at Arthur.

"Yes."

"What are you doing?" A male voice demanded, coming up behind Dawn.

She reacted, grabbing the man's hand as it clamped on her shoulder. She yanked him forward into her elbow, slamming her balled fist up into his face. She finished by sweeping the legs.

Whoever he was, groaned painfully. Dagonet rushed over to their side.

"What happened?"

"This jerk put his hands on me."

"I just asked you what you were doing!" Galahad yelled from the ground.

"That's three knights you've managed to attack, Dawn." Guinevere smirked. "That leaves four."

"I'd like to see you try Tristan or Bors." Galahad grumbled, pushing himself up.

"Sleep. All of you." Dagonet commanded. He led Dawn and Guinevere back to the cart.

Guinevere crept back into the cart where she would sleep. Dawn paused. She found that she was restless. She'd spent a whole day on a horse, then on a cart recovering from the horse and playing nursemaid. She was loathe to get back in the blasted thing. It smelled funky and she would most likely spend all of tomorrow in it.

"Dagonet." She whispered.

"Dawn, go to bed."  
"Can I sleep out here? With you and Lucan?"

"Go to the cart."

"It smells in the cart. I won't hog the blankets. And I promise I won't drool on you." Dawn gave him a pout. "Please?"

"Quickly." He held her cloak out. She bypassed that and quickly burrowed into his arms.

"Brr. It's chilly." She whispered.

"Which is why you should be in the cart."

"It. Smells."

"And I don't?" He'd never been self-conscious about his odor before he met this girl.

"Yeah, but you smell nice. Like leather and man sweat."

"Man sweat smells nice?"

"On certain people, yeah." She rested her head on his arm, grinning up at him.

"People will talk if you sleep out here." He said quietly.

"Let 'em talk. What do I care? We're just two new friends, keeping each other warm and out of the smelly cart. Besides, you gave Lucan all your warm stuff. It's my duty to keep you from freezing. Can't go around having a seventh knight-sicle." She was breathing faster. He looked away from her. She wished she could just close her eyes and go to sleep, but something was nagging at the corner of her mind.

"Dagonet?"

"Hm?"

"Will you do me one more favor?" She whispered.

"What, lady?"

"Will you kiss me?"

"What?" Dagonet turned to face her.

Dawn didn't wait for an answer. She trace the scar beneath his eye with her thumb, using it to anchor her hand as she leaned up and kissed him. Softly, closed mouthed. Gently. She sighed, kissing a little harder. She felt his lips, chapped from the wind, open beneath hers. She opened her own, and their tongues engage in a slow, teasing dance. When they finally broke, Dawn let out a shaky breath.

"Shiver me timbers." She grinned up at him.

"Hm?" His large hand tracing over the exposed skin of her back.

"Something a very old friend of mine once told me." She whispered, going in to kiss him again. But instead of on his mouth, she pressed her lips to the top of his scar, planting small kisses down the entire length of it. "Put your hands on me, please?" She whispered in his ear. He couldn't refuse.

Dagonet was not one to jump into bed with the first tavern girl he saw, unlike some of his brothers in arms. This girl was different. He'd never felt something so intense and unexplainable as this before. Their joining was in near silence, only tiny grunts escaping their mouths. One of the reasons for this was the fact that he couldn't stop kissing her. When they were done, he placed her between himself and Lucan. She sighed contentedly as she leaned against his arm and drifted off to sleep.

Neither was awake when Guinevere, with a small smile on her lips, snuck out into the forest. Arthur was.

__

2005

Willow furrowed her brow as she stared down at the cell phone. Dawn would never willingly drop her phone. She loved that little thing. She looked up at Giles.

"I don't know how good I am at this." She sighed.

"Just try, Willow."

"Getting this kind of reading - it isn't easy."

Willow crossed her legs and sat down on the grass and watched as the shadows of the day before rolled back.

A/N2: Sigh. Another chapter down.

As a personal sidenote, I have a quote stuck in my head. It's along the lines of someone (male) saying: "Bed him. Bed him well, Lady." I cannot for the life of me remember what it's from and who says it. If anyone knows this quote and can tell me, I'll write a 500 word King Arthur crossover drabble with your knight of choice and BtVS character of choice.


	5. 5 Through Hell and High Water

Title: Protector Of The Weak

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 to R (for language and some mild naughtiness)

Disclaimer: Not mine. Joss owns all things BtVS, and somebody else owns K.A.

Spoilers: Season 7, and the movie _King Arthur_

Summary: Midnight rendezvous, predawn attacks, and big old face-offs.

A/N: So, wow. I've written four chapters of this story. The first chapter was two pages long, the second was six pages, the third was ten pages (my all-time record high for any fic I've written over the last year and half), and the fourth was fourteen pages. Fourteen, and unlike chapter 3, it was mostly my own lines. I scare myself sometimes.

The lyrics Dawn sings in chapter four are from Alanis Morissette's song _Excuses _off of _So-Called Chaos._ I don't own her either. I've been trying to figure out what song really fits the pairing. So far, all I've managed to come up with is _Knees of My Bees _by Alanis Morissette.   
A huge thanks to everyone who emailed or reviewed the story (and the question that had me tossing and turning all night long) It was in _A Knight's Tale_. I remembered that it was a tall, blond British guy who said it - just not the name of the movie. I actually hit myself when I read the first review. Any of the reward/request pairings (although, I do have a Buffy/Lancelot story in Winter Tidings) will/may be written after PotW is finished.

There won't be a closing Author's note on this chapter.

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5. Through Hell and High Water

__

2005

Willow watched as the shadows of the day rolled past her. She saw Giles speaking to the young watcher, saw him find Dawn's cell phone. She saw animals move through out the night. Then she saw Dawn. The young woman was flung towards the trees by a strong wind.. The shadows replayed her shutting the phone, the wind picking up, her being lifted off her feet, and disappearing before she reached the trees.

Willow disengaged herself from the shadows and gasped in a big gulp of fresh air. Giles slapped her back.

"Willow? Willow, what did you see?"

"Something - something pulled her through a portal. Something ancient, Giles." Willow glanced over at the trees. "Something that's been around since the demons left."

"And it took Dawn?"

"I - there's so many shadows, Giles. Old ones, they keep jumping up at me every time I try to get a fix on Dawn's shadow. It's weird. I saw horses and swords."

__

467

Guinevere slipped back out into the night. She smiled softly at the girl nestled in the arms of the knight. This girl confused her, almost as much as the knights did. She did not ponder on this for very long. Guinevere had not mistaken the sounds of the night. She was summoned, and was to play guide to Arthur. She purposely rustled the branches nearest him as she slipped into the waiting forest. She only looked back once, across the mist strewn inclines, and only then to coax him along.

She turned to face Arthur. Guinevere looked away, catching the eye of the man waiting in the woods before glancing back at Arthur. He turned his head and jumped back from her, drawing his sword. The man in the shadows made his way down the hill, his staff finding the easiest path to take.

"You betrayed me." Arthur accused, pointing Excalibur at her.

"He means you no harm."

"Peace between us this night, Arthur Castus." The blue painted man said from the hill. Arthur looked around him, expecting an attack from any direction. "So Rome is leaving. The Saxon is come. The world we have known and fought for is ended." Arthur lowered Excalibur a little. "Now we must make a new world."

"Your world, Merlin, not mine. I shall be in Rome."

"To find peace? The Saxon will come to Rome." Merlin scoffed.

"My knights trust me not to betray them to their enemy."

"_Rome_ was my enemy, not Arthur. We have no fight between us now."

"You tell that to the knights you killed before my eyes, whose bones are buried in this earth." Arthur's voice was rough with the beginnings of a bitter anger.

"We have all lost brothers." Merlin said wearily.

"You know nothing of the loss I speak!" He yelled. Arthur jerked Excalibur at him. "Shall I help you remember? An attack on a village. The screams of an innocent woman.

Arthur told him then of his mother, the Briton born woman who'd been trapped inside a burning building as young Arthur watched on helplessly. Roman soldiers had fought of the Woads, but no one could get to his mother.

"I ran to the burial mound of my father to free her. To kill you." Arthur held the tip of Excalibur to Merlin's throat, remembering how he had been too late to save her. "I feel the heat of that fire on my face even now.'

"I did not wish her dead." Merlin said simply. "She was of our blood, as are you."

"If you are so determined to leave us to slaughter, why did you save so many?" Guinevere spoke for the first time, drawing Arthur's attention from Merlin. He lowered his sword.

"My men are strong, but they have need of a true leader. They believe you can do anything. To defeat the Saxon we need a master of war. Why do you think I spared you in the forest?" Merlin went to stand behind Guinevere. "That sword you carry is made of iron from this earth, forged in the fires of Britain. It was love of your mother that freed the sword, not hatred of me. Love, Arthur."

"It is your destiny." Guinevere said.

"There is no destiny. There is only free will." Arthur replied, turning away from them.

"And what of the free will of your knights?" Merlin asked, stopping Arthur a few feet away. "Did they die in vain?"

Arthur walked on, leaving Merlin and Guinevere in the silence of the clearing. She turned to look at her leader. He sighed.

"What is it, child?"

"There was a girl, traveling with the knights. She was there at the attack."

"Yes. They told me she appeared - out of the mists. Set an arrow off course." Merlin answered, quietly.

"She asked if you were a magician."

"And what did you tell her?"

"That you only knew the healing arts." Guinevere paused. "She speaks strangely. Acts strangely as well. She is not a Briton, but she is not a Roman."

"A Sarmatian, then?" Merlin asked.

"No." Guinevere paused. "A warrior. Like our women, but not."

"What did she want from you?"

"A way home, through your magic." Guinevere smiled. "To a home that is years away."

Dawn felt a strong arm draped over hers. She smiled in her sleep as the fingers on her hip stretched. She didn't want to wake up, to have it all be a dream. She wanted to stay in the warm cocoon of his arms for as long as humanly possible. Dawn didn't believe in love at first sight. She'd never been in love before, not truly of her own free will anyway. Her first kiss had been with a vampire, and the next guy she'd had a thing for ended up trying to sacrifice a girl to gain riches, and the last guy she'd had a thing for had used a letterman's jacket that had been enchanted to attract girls.

Because of her work with the council, and her big family secret, Dawn didn't have time to have a boyfriend. Not that there hadn't been guys - just no one that was long lasting and durable. She'd been using Faith's advice on guys for the last year or so. She'd slept with one other guy, a fellow employee of the Council. Last she'd heard, he'd been stationed in Antarctica.

And then there was Dagonet. The big softie that he was. She swore she must have blushed in her sleep, remembering the feel of his hands and his lips on hers. It was something else. There was something in there that called to her. Something big, monumentally huge about him. She'd never been truly in love, but she had a feeling she'd just fallen for the big man. It didn't seem all that scary anymore.

The sun began to break through the clouds of dawn. Not many stirred among the camps yet, for the sun was not yet so high. Dagonet lay protectively between the world and Dawn. Snow flakes spotted his clothing, as they did on Dawn and Lucan. The world had not wrenched them from sleep, not yet shown its cruelty yet. There was peace in this sight, this image of what could be a family. That image got quite the rude awakening.

Marius' guards quietly made their way across the camp to the sleeping knight and his charges. Marius smiled wickedly.

"Seize him!"

The guards dragged him roughly across the ground, kicking at him. Dagonet had instinctively tried to remain where he was by latching on to the closest thing, which just so happened to be Dawn. She yelped in pain as he was dragged away from her. He lashed out, swinging at the legs of one of the guards as he got to his knees. Dawn watched frozen for a second.

"No!" Lucan screamed.

It was his scream that kicked her into action. One of the guards kneed him in the stomach, while the other threw a low punch at Dagonet's abdomen as he got to his feet. Hiking up the hem of her skirt, Dawn screamed as she threw herself onto the back of the guard, wrapping her legs around his waist and punching at his head with her fists. She kicked her heel as hard into his groin as possible. Dagonet took advantage of this diversion, landing a right hook to the face of the other guard. Dawn's guard tried to shrug her off, but it was Dagonet's elbow to his face that sent the man reeling.

Dawn jumped back from the falling man, giving him another kick. Marius snuck around the brawl to where Lucan sat. Just as the boy was going to yell again, the Roman clamped a hand over his mouth, dragging him away. Dagonet lashed out at one of the fallen guards with his foot. Dawn growled at the guard nearest her, putting him in a choke hold and punching at him when he tried to pull her to the ground. Dagonet spun around, noticing a third guard coming behind him. He ducked the guard's first punch. Grabbing onto the shoulder of the guard, Dagonet yanked him back to slam his fist into his face.

Bending low as the guard fell, Dagonet pulled two large daggers from each boot, prepared to take on the guards. Dawn kicked her guard away from her and inched her way over to Dagonet. By now they were gathering a small crowd, as Alecto and Fulcinia emerged from the carriage behind Marius. Dagonet jabbed the daggers toward the guards.

"I have the boy!" Marius yelled, yanking Lucan's head up and holding a dagger to the boy's throat. Dawn felt her eyes narrow in anger. Marius looked around at the guards, who seemed to have halted as well. "Kill him!" Marius ordered.

"No, don't! Let him go!" Fulcinia cried, tugging on the arm that held Lucan. Marius flung her aside with his arm. Dawn slipped her hand along her thigh while his attention was on his wife.

"Kill him now!"

Two blurs of movement crossed between the carriage and the man. One was an arrow that pierced the chest of Marius. Before he could even let out a pained gasp, a small, thin dagger slammed into his throat. Dawn rose to her feet as a bow wielding Guinevere strode across the snow covered ground. Dagonet turned first to Guinevere, as her arrow had crossed in front of him. As Marius crumpled to the ground, Lucan raced to Dagonet. The guards stared at Guinevere as she set another arrow, and pulled back the string. Fulcinia went to her dead husband's side. Dagonet moved Lucan behind him, and caught Dawn's eyes as he moved the child to her side.

"Down." He ordered, grabbing his sword with both hands. "Hah!" He cried, poised for whatever attack the guards had planned.

"Like that's going to stop me." Dawn muttered to herself. There were at least a half-dozen guards. Dagonet and Guinevere were good, but they weren't that good. "Stay down." She said, moving Lucan farther back toward the carriage. She grabbed her own sword, hefting it. She turned to face the guards to their right. "This could be fun."

Arthur and Lancelot strode over from their resting places, each warrior had his weapons of choice drawn, flanking Guinevere. Lancelot rested his two blades over his shoulders.

"You're hand seems to be better." He said to Guinevere, who gave him a look from the corner of her eye.

She let the arrow fly into the ground by the guards feet. A warning that there would be no more warning shots. From behind her, Galahad and Gawain rode up, each curious as to what was going on.

"Artorius!" Bors yelled, coming from the other side. He urged his horse faster, his axe upraised. "Do we have a problem?" When he came to a stop behind two guards, he let the horse pressure them. "Huh?"

"You have a choice." Arthur said, pointing Excalibur at them. "You help or you die."

"Either way, we win." Dawn raised her eyebrow, a small smirk crossing her lips. Bors answered that by nudging his horse into one of the guards. The lead guard threw his weapon to the snow.

"Put down your weapons." He ordered. When they hesitated, he yelled again. "Do it now!"

"Yeah!" Dagonet yelled in his deepest, scariest voice.

One by one, the guards threw down their weapons in a sign of defeat. Dawn felt a nervous breath escape her lips. Arthur lowered Excalibur, and looked back at Jols, nodding. The squire returned the nod, and raced forward to collect the guards weapons. A neighing could be heard off in the distance. Bors turned his attention to the rider.

"How many did you kill?" Bors called to Tristan.

"Four." The scout replied when he was close enough to be heard.

"Not a bad start to the day!" Bors said laughing, as Tristan rode past him.

Tristan reined in his horse when he reached Arthur. Pulling something from the side of his saddle, he let it hit the ground with a thud. Arthur looked down to seek the Saxon crossbow. When he looked up, Tristan spoke.

"Armor-piercing. They're close. We have no time."

"You ride ahead." Arthur ordered, stalking over to where the body of Marius lay on the ground.

"What did I miss?" Tristan asked before he left.

"A nice early morning ambush." Gawain replied.

"And a lesson to be wary of the girl." Galahad continued, glancing between the Guinevere and Dawn.

"You're gonna have to be more specific." Tristan retorted, urging his horse along.

"Are we quite sure she isn't a Woad herself?" Galahad asked.

"Why don't you go over and ask her?" Lancelot sighed, thinking something along the same lines himself. This lady Dawn was quite the mystery. Guinevere he could at least understand. The other girl was something he couldn't even begin to fathom.

Dawn sagged against Dagonet as he made sure Lucan was unharmed. There was a tiny scratch at his throat. It wasn't bleeding. That was a good thing.

"You were a brave boy, Lucan." Dagonet said, squeezing the boy's shoulder. Dawn felt her heart do a little flip-flop at this. Yup, she was on the train to Lovetown.

"Yeah, you got the attention of Guinevere and the other knights to come help us." Dawn smiled at the boy. Dagonet smiled down at him as well.

"Lady Dawn." Arthur's commanding voice caught her off guard, making her jump.

"Yeah?" She asked, trying to calm herself down.

"I believe this is yours." Arthur handed her the dagger which still shone with the blood of Marius. Dawn gulped at the sight of it. He was the first human she had ever killed. She made her face completely blank, pretending it wasn't a huge deal.

"Thanks."

"Dagonet, get them up." Arthur spoke to the other knight, but his eyes focused on her. "We leave immediately." He turned to gather his saddle.

Guinevere lowered her bow and made her way over to the carriage. Dawn was hovering closely to Dagonet. She was sure this was because of how they spent the night. She did not judge the pair. They were lucky, to have found something in this world to hold onto.

"Your aim was good." Guinevere smiled at her.

"Yours too." Dawn returned a shaky smile.

"We have time to wash our faces." Guinevere glanced down at the hand that still held the bloodied dagger. "Do we not?"

"Hurry." Dagonet said, catching the look Guinevere gave him.

"I'll be right back." Dawn whispered to Dagonet.

The two women briskly made their way to the water's edge. Guinevere took the dagger from her, scrubbing at the blood. Dawn stared at her for a second.

"Was he the first you have killed?" Guinevere asked, handing the cleaned blade to her.

"The first human." Dawn muttered. "I've killed - wild beasts before."

"He was no better than a beast." Guinevere replied.

"He was going to kill Lucan. And he gave the order to kill Dagonet." Dawn said angrily.

"You fought well, sister in arms." Guinevere smiled.

"Sister?" Dawn looked back at her.

"If the men can be brothers, can we not be sisters as well?" Guinevere looked over at the knights. Galahad and Gawain were already off toward the head of the train., Lancelot was not far behind Arthur, and Bors spoke to Dagonet. Tristan was the odd man out, but he had his hawk.

"Yeah. Warrior women. I like the sound of that." Dawn smiled. It was the first time since all of the potential slayers had invaded her house that Dawn thought she was actually being considered an equal.

"As do I, sister." Guinevere smiled. "Come, your lover worries."

"He's -" Dawn started to protest. But he was her lover.

"Was he your first as well?" Guinevere teased.

"No, not in that sense." Dawn blushed. "But he was the best so far."

"And do you love him?" Guinevere prodded.

"I think I might." Dawn sighed, a happy grin chasing the haunted look from her eyes.

Dagonet spoke quietly to the boy as he helped him back into the carriage. The other occupants of the carriage were not back yet. He felt a pang in his chest. She should not have endangered herself. She should have stayed back, safe from the fighting with Lucan. Her brave front only masked her fear. He saw it when Arthur handed her the dagger. She had not lied about being a good throw. She might even rival Tristan, and would best Gawain and Galahad.

He loved this woman, of that much he was certain. He had never loved someone so much before. His brothers, Vanora and Bors' children, even Lucan had his love, but that love was not the same. He feared for this girl, this woman that had burst into his life and shown him a future he might have. A future with her. He could imagine her, heavy with his child. He could picture the life of a free man. Dagonet didn't even know, that if presented with this choice, if she would even choose him.

He said nothing to her as Guinevere climbed into the carriage. Dawn placed her hand on his forearm. She frowned, looking up at him.

"Arthur is preparing to leave. You should get in as well."

"Dag -"She looked at him, confusion marring her pretty face. She lifted her hand to his face, her thumb resting on his scar. Cupping it with both hands she drew his mouth closer to her. "I still. . .last night was real." She sighed, searching his face. "And it meant something to me. Something - something I thought I'd never have."

"What was that? Hm?" He asked, wanting to hear the words, but fearing them all the same.

"It was love." She whispered the words, lifting her mouth to his, kissing him as uncertainly as she had the night before.

Dagonet allowed himself to touch her, to pull her close. He kissed her back, turning her away from the watchful eyes of his fellow knights. He pulled back, his breath ragged. She smiled, softly and whispered to him.

"I love you."

"As do I." He said in a sigh.

"Dagonet, are they not ready yet?" Lancelot called, walking past them. "Get in the carriage, girl."

"Bite me." Dawn said sweetly.

"Dawn." Dagonet said quietly.

"If he won't play nice, then neither will I." Dawn replied, she turned to get into the carriage. "And the name is Dawn, Sir Jerk-a-lot."

Dagonet pressed his lips together, fighting back the urge to laugh at her. Lancelot stared at the girls in the carriage. They whispered to each other as if they plotted how to raise more hell. They were troublesome, the both of them.

"Are we quite sure she hasn't a little Woad in her?" Lancelot asked Dagonet. When the other Knight didn't answer, he continued back toward his horse.

"Perhaps she has a little Sarmatian in her." Guinevere smirked at Dawn, hearing what Lancelot had said.

"Guinevere!" Dawn hissed. "They keep saying that. Asking if I'm a Woad."

"They have never seen a woman fight who was not one." Guinevere sighed. "Their women are complacent, they marry and have sons. They are not allowed to defend their home, die fighting for a cause."

The carriage began to move. Dawn thought about what Guinevere said. Dagonet had said he loved her, but what would happen if she found a way home? The Watcher's Council would in around, but she was sure they were in Rome. She loved him, more than she'd loved anyone who'd come before. Would she even want to go? She missed Buffy, and the remaining Scoobies, but could she force herself to leave? Could she make herself go home?

Arthur watched as they loaded the body of Marius onto a near empty carriage. It would be at the back of the train. Arthur was confused about the girl - both girls, actually. Guinevere could have left with Merlin, and yet she stayed. Dawn could have shrunk away from the skirmish between the guards, and yet she'd stood by Dagonet.

Arthur rode past their carriage, hearing the boy laugh at something Dawn had said. At least they were keeping themselves amused. No one else seemed able to. He neared the carriage of Alecto. The young man was staring out of the window as Arthur approached it.

"I'm sorry for your loss." Arthur said.

"My father lost his way." Alecto replied. "He used to say the Church is there to help us stay on our path. It didn't help those he made suffer."

"The path he chose was beyond the reach of the Church, Alecto."

"But not of Rome. What my father believed, so Rome believes."

"What, that some men are born to be slaves? No, that isn't true." Arthur said.

"It is so!" Alecto cried, the spoke again, uncertainty in his young voice. "He told me so."

"Pelagius, a man as close to me as any, is there now, teaching that all men are free, equal. And that each of us has the right to choose his own destiny."

"Teach? How?" Alecto questioned him. "They killed Pelagius a year past. Germanius and the others were damned by his teachings. They had him excommunicated and killed." Arthur's mouth opened in disbelief. Alecto continued, shaking his head. "The Rome you talk of doesn't exist, except in your dreams."

The carriage went on, but Arthur found himself standing still. The boy spoke truthfully, of that he was certain. Bishop Germanius had ordered the death of the man who had been like a father to Arthur.

Arthur stood, completely still at the mouth of a large valley. A large lake, frozen over loomed before him. Tristan had told him of it before riding to gather the other knights and Jols.

"Is there any other way?" Arthur asked.

"No. We have to cross the ice." Tristan replied.

"Get them all out of the carriages. Tell them to spread out." Arthur ordered Jols. The squire and turned his horse around.

The seven warriors dismounted and began leading the way across the ice. Dawn, Guinevere and Lucan remained inside, ordered by Dagonet to remain within the carriage. Dawn understood why the other two were told to say inside, they were still too weak to cross such a long distance. She wasn't. Dawn wrapped the cloak around her tightly, slipping from the carriage.

"Do not go far." Guinevere warned.

"Please. It's not like I'm going to do cartwheels or throw snowballs. I'm making the cart lighter." Dawn snorted.

"Dagonet would not be pleased." Lucan replied.

"No, but he would understand why I did it." At least she hoped he would.

The train of people slowly made their way across. Each step measured, all aware that too much pressure on one spot of the ice could be their doom. Dawn let out a nervous breath. She really didn't like the snow and all things associated with it. It started groaning and splintering beneath their feet. The horses began lifting their heads and whinnying. Arthur held up his hand, bringing the train to a halt.

No one spoke. The sounds of drums could be heard in the distance. The Saxons were closer than they thought. People began to look nervously behind them. Arthur began moving again, only to stop a few steps ahead. The knights shared a look, each face wearing a grim expression. Dawn watched, wanting to know what they were thinking. She had a feeling she wouldn't like it.

Arthur turned his horse around and faced the other knights. Alecto and Fulcinia came to stand beside Dawn. Guinevere slipped from the carriage and watched the knights.

"Knights . . ." Arthur began.

"Well, I'm tired of running." Bors looked at the other knights before leading his horse over to Arthur's. "And these Saxons are so close behind my ass is hurtin'."

"Never liked looking over my shoulder anyway." Tristan said, looking up at the sky. Dagonet smiled.

"Be a pleasure to put an end to this racket." Gawain sighed.

"And finally get a look at the bastards." Galahad replied.

"Here. Now." Dagonet finished, leading his horse across as well, giving Arthur a small grin.

Lancelot said nothing when Arthur looked his way. He sighed and shook his head. Arthur wouldn't change his mind even if Lancelot told him it was insane.

"Jols!" Arthur called out.

"You two, take the horses."

Almost immediately, the knights began to remove their weapons from their saddles, making piles before them on the ice. Ganis and Jols unhitched additional weapons from the pack horses.

"Ganis," Arthur called to the villager, "I need you to lead the people. The main Saxon army is inland, so if you track the coastline 'til you're well south of the Wall, you'll be safe."

"But you're seven against 200?" Ganis asked.

"Eight." Guinevere called. "You could use another bow."

"Nine." Dawn added, following her. "There is no way in hell I'm not getting in on this."

Arthur watched the two women walk past him in shock. He had not expected them to offer their services in this battle.

"I'd rather stay and fight." Ganis continued.

"You'll get your chance soon enough." Arthur replied. He looked over at the guards. "This man is now your captain. You do as he says. Am I understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"Go. Go!" Arthur commanded them.

Dawn and Guinevere picked from the bows not already claimed by the other knights. The people began moving around them, spurred on by Ganis' words. Alecto made his way over to Arthur.

"Right. Come on, then! Move on!" Ganis cried.

"I am able. I can fight." Alecto said.

"No. You must bear witness to all you have seen." Arthur placed a hand on the younger man's shoulder. "There's one thing you must do, and that's get back to Rome."

His heart nearly stopped beating when he saw her approach the other knights. Dawn looked up at him. Giving him a half smile, she told Jols to lay out her weapons beside Dagonet's. Handing Jols her sword, she followed Guinevere's footsteps over to the weapons. She picked the only bow left for her to use. She was testing it when he approached her.

"You should not be here." Dagonet said evenly.

"If little Miss Dislocated Fingers is staying then so am I." Dawn muttered, staring evenly at him.

"You willingly endanger yourself?"

"Yes, I do, Dagonet." Dawn sighed. "I'm not leaving. You can try and make me go, but I'll just come back." She headed over to her row of weapons in the line Jols had laid out for her.

"Dawn . . ."

"I'm not leaving you." She murmured, staring up into his eyes. "Right now, you're all I've got in this world, and I am not leaving."

"You act like a foolish child."

"No, I'm acting like an adult. I'm making the hard choices too." She smiled. "Besides, this is more fun."

"She's staying as well?" Galahad asked, joining the line.

"Yup, _she's _just like a bad penny you can't get rid of." Dawn snorted. He was really very condescending, and she was kinda glad she'd hit him earlier. "If Guinevere gets to play, then I get to play. If I don't play, then I get mad. And trust me when I say you don't want to get me mad. It invloves the meeting of my foot and your ass."

"Are you sure she's not a Woad? She has the temper of one." Galahad muttered. Dawn nearly screamed.

"No, _She_ has the temper of a person who's spoken at rather than to. And if you keep calling me a Woad, I'm gonna have to hurt you." Dawn snapped. "Men." She spat.

Dagonet glanced over at Dawn. She should be in that carriage, with Lucan. She looked up at him then, as if challenging him to make her leave. He knew she would not. He looked over at the young boy he'd pulled from a dark well only the day before. He smiled at the child, hoping he would see him again one day. Dagonet raised his hand in farewell. Lucan raised his own small hand.

Perhaps Dagonet would raise the brave little boy as his own when he returned to the wall. Perhaps Dawn would be his mother, and make them a family. He kept those thoughts tucked away safely in the back of his mind.

The seven knights made a single line crossing the passageway. Tristan stood at one end, Lancelot and Guinevere behind him. Bors stood at the other, with Dagonet, Dawn, Galahad, and Gawain behind him. Arthur stood at the center as the Saxon army entered the valley.

"Hold until I give the command." Arthur ordered.

Guinevere exchanged a look with Dawn. Her own fear, while wiped clean from her face, lay just below the surface of her eyes. Dawn's face was calm, her mouth a thin unforgiving line. Her eyes were narrowed and her bow lowered. But there was fear. None of them was foolish enough to not be afraid of this. Lancelot watched the exchange between the two women.

"You look frightened." Lancelot spoke to Guinevere. She looked away from Dawn and at him. Sighing, he continued. "There's a large number of lonely men out there."

"Don't worry, I won't let them rape you." Guinevere replied.

"Hah!" Dawn let out a little laugh. That showed him. Dagonet gave her a look. She winked up at him.

One of the Saxon's let an arrow fly. It skidded across the ice. They were out of range. Dawn took in a deep breath. Arthur kept his eyes forward as he spoke.

"I believe they're waiting for an invitation. Bors, Tristan."

"They're far out of range." Guinevere said, turning her head towards Arthur.

Arthur nodded to the two knights. Tristan and Bors each filled their bows with multiple arrows. Aiming the bows upward rather than shooting straight, they drew back the strings and let them fly. Across the ice, Dawn could make out several bodies collapsing to the ground. Arthur looked over at Guinevere, who kept her eyes in front of her.

The Saxons began to move slowly across the ice. As one, the line of warriors raised their bows high, waiting for Arthur's command.

"Aim for the wings of the ranks. Make them cluster." He ordered.

_Make them cluster. Make them heavier. Make the ice crack._ Dawn thought to herself. It was a pretty smart plan. She let the bow snap with a crisp twang and lined up more arrows. The left side skirted inwards. The bows twanged again, this time aiming for the right side. Bodies fell to the ice, the Saxons squeezing in closer to one another. Another volley of arrows flew from the bows, attacking the left side again. The Saxons moved inward, the ice fracturing beneath them.

Shouts of hold the ranks echoed in the valley, but the Saxons ignored it. They clustered closer together, trying to avoid the arrows. Suddenly, they listened to their commander, moving in rank formation. The ice cracked, but held firm.

"It's not gonna break. Back." Arthur ordered. "Fall back! Prepare for combat."

Each of the knights drew their swords and stepped back. Dawn felt the adrenaline pump through her veins as she held her broadsword at the ready. She glanced over at Dagonet who had just drawn his sword from the pile before him. He held it in front of his face for a moment, staring at it and then out again at the Saxons. He looked over at Dawn, her brown cloak fluttering behind her in the wind, her red dress clinging to her. He felt his face go completely blank. He squared his shoulders and threw the sword to the ground. Grabbing up his axe and giving a powerful yell, he ran at the Saxon line.

"Dag!" Bors yelled, watching his best friend run towards the ice.

"Dagonet!" Dawn felt herself screaming.

"Cover him!" Arthur yelled, moving forward to grab his bow.

Dagonet swung his axe over his shoulder. He would not let them pass. He would not let them kill another innocent woman or child. He would not let them kill his friends. He would not let them kill Dawn. He slammed the axe into the ice. He slammed it harder. He had to break the ice, they could not pass!

They set loose another volley of arrows, aiming for the front lines of the Saxon army. Dawn remembered what Tristan had said about their crossbows. They were armor-piercing.

"Archers!" Dawn yelled out, setting another arrow into her bow. She let it fly. Her heart was racing a hundred miles per hour. She grabbed more arrows, pulling them from Dagonet's quiver.

The first set of archers were dispatched of. More arrows. _Put it in, pull it back, let it fly, keep him alive. _Dawn shouted at herself in her mind. _Twang_ Grab another. She could faintly hear a yell in the distance.

"The ice is breaking!"

Dagonet felt the ice shudder and buckle beneath him. It was not broken yet. It needed to be completely broken. He had to be sure of it. He raised the axe for one more blow, when he felt the arrow burst through his armor and deep into his flesh. He fell heavily to his side and onto his back. He gasped.

"Dag!" Bors shouted again, watching his friend fall to the ice.

"No!" Dawn screamed. Bow and quiver still hand she raced out across the ice. Arthur was not far behind her.

Lining up four arrows, she aimed the bow horizontally and let them fly. Arthur stepped beside her pulling her back as a volley of Saxon arrows hissed past them. She raced harder, firing as she ran. She provided the cover fire for him. He was stronger, he could pull Dagonet to safety. He would be all right. They would be all right. The Saxons would fall into the ice, and Dagonet would be a hero. They'd laugh about this someday.

The knights behind them set of volley after volley into the Saxons. One of the Saxon arrows nicked Arthur's neck, he slowed a bit but continued towards Dagonet. He was up on his knees, axe raised above his head. He was still alive. Dawn sucked in a lungful of cold air. They would reach him in time.

Four arrows had pierced him. He barely felt them, his mind so set to the task of breaking the ice that he had blocked out all other feelings. Yelling one final time, he slammed the axe down into the breaking ice.

A large fissure cracked along the ice, breaking apart in large chunks. The Saxons caught on the rocks scrambled to stay afoot. Many plunged into the icy depths of the water. Dagonet felt the blood fill his mouth, felt his arms lose feeling. He saw the water rushing up at him. He had not failed. He had done it. His last thought was of her, he saw her smiling face as she leaned up to kiss him.

Dagonet's body slipped into the water, and he did not try to stop himself from falling. Dawn let another volley of arrows fly. Arthur slid across the ice on his knees just as Dagonet fell. He shoved his hand into water, finding the scruff of Dagonet's collar. He pulled his comrade through the water as Dawn set off another volley. Dagonet didn't move. She lowered her bow and reached to help him. They had to get him out of that water. He could become hypothermic and go into shock. Bors dropped his bow and raced across to help them.

"Dag!"

"Keep firing!" Arthur hissed at her. She saw the arrows and blinked back furious tears. Setting up another shot, she let them fly once more. She aimed for the leader, or at least the one who looked like a leader. She felt quite satisfied when the man collapsed into the ice.

"I'm out." She grabbed his other arm, and they pulled him across the ice. He felt so cold.

Bors had reached them by then. He took the arm Dawn had, and they began tugging him across the ice. It wasn't enough. Dagonet was a big man. They needed more help. Dawn felt hot tears slip past her cheeks. He would be all right. They just needed to get him to safety. The ice they were on began to crack.

"Pull back! Arthur!" Lancelot yelled.

They had gotten to their feet, but the breaking ice simply knocked them back down. They were half-crawling. If they didn't hurry up, all of them would be lost.

"Help us!" Bors yelled back.

Tristan and Gawain dropped their bows and raced to the aid of their friends. They pulled them to safety as Galahad, Guinevere and Lancelot provided cover fire. They set his body down on the ground behind the line of archers. Bors leaned over him.

"Dagonet. Stay with me." Bors touched his bluing face. "Dagonet! Stay with me!"

Dawn felt her knees give out as she let go of his limp arm. His eyes were closed and blood trickled from his mouth. She felt a searing pain tear through her as she stared at him. He was turning blue. His eyes were opened, but they no longer held the spark of life she had seen in them the first time he looked at her. They were dull and hollow. Hot, bitter tears raced down her cheeks as she watched him slip away. She let out an anguished scream. No, he wasn't supposed to die! He was supposed to live. She shoved Arthur out of the way, tearing open Dagonet's armor.

She could do CPR. She could save him. He'd just swallowed too much water. He wasn't dead. She counted under her breath, blew into his mouth. He would live! They would be together.

"Don't you die, damn it!" She cried, beating on his chest. "You are not leaving us! You're not leaving me!"

Guinevere watched as Dawn broke down, yelling at the body of a dead man. Anger coursed over her. This man had been a good man. He had saved a child and treated him like his own son. He had loved one woman, who was completely devoted to him. He had risked his life to save the lives of his friends and the people who rode on with out them. She set her sights on the middle of the group and let one final arrow fly at the Saxon leader. It was a pity that it missed.

Dawn couldn't move. She couldn't breath. She couldn't feel. Her eyes that had once held such a vibrant gleam to them, looked dull. Her hair was in shambles. She didn't care. She looked awful. She didn't care. Arthur had tried to say something to her. All she could focus on was the bright red blood on his neck.

"You've got red on you." She said, her voice harsh even to her own ears.

Turning away, she glanced at the horse that would carry the body. The body. She felt fresh tears form in her eyes. Hadn't she once yelled at Buffy for calling their mother 'the body'. He had a name. He had been loved. She felt a hand touch her shoulder. She turned her cold stare onto Lancelot's face.

"Don't touch me." She spat.

She walked alongside the horse. She didn't want to leave him alone. She didn't want him to feel as alone as she felt. Lancelot grabbed her by the shoulders. He spun her around.

"Stop this!"

"I said don't touch me." She hissed, reeling back her fist. It connected soundly with his face. "Don't _ever_ touch me." Lancelot looked up at her from the ground, his lip split. She continued walking.

"Dawn." Guinevere spoke quietly to her. "Dawn, come with me."

"No. I can't leave him." She murmured.

"He will be well looked after. I promise you." Guinevere slowly reached for her hand. "I am your sister in arms. I would not lie to you."

"Ok." Fresh tears trickled down her face as Guinevere helped her into the carriage.

It was as if she were broken. Guinevere supposed she was, in a way. She was foreign to this land, and Dagonet had served as her anchor.

Dawn did not speak for the rest of the journey to the wall. She refused to speak to anyone. Guinevere had to help her drink water, when Fulcinia feared she was dehydrated. She stared out the front of the carriage, her eyes ever on the horse that carried him home.

The great wall loomed before them. It was very . . .Roman looking. Dawn let her eyes leave his body only then, so she could look at the wall as it had been. She watched as the knights all joined Arthur at the head of the line. They were one short. It took her a minute to realize that they weren't. All six knights were present and accounted for.

A great aching filled her chest. It hadn't been enough. There wasn't enough time. It wasn't supposed to end so quickly.

The knights entered the village first. Bishop Germanius waited anxiously for them. A huge smile broke across the Roman's face as he caught sight of the carriage holding Alecto and Fulcinia.

"Ah, God!" He crossed over to them. "Christ be praised. Against all the odds Satan could muster. Alecto, let me see you." Alecto stared at him strangely as he exited the carriage. "You have triumphed! Young Alecto, let me see you. You are here." Alecto backed away from him, a concerned look on his face.

Outside the gate where the knights were, Guinevere helped Dawn and Lucan from the carriage. As she lowered herself down, Lucan ran through the guards that were meant to keep the villagers out. The movement caught Dawn's eye. Guinevere spun around.

"Lucan!"

"You, boy! Stop!" The Roman guards yelled, chasing after him.

They did not get far. Galahad raised his sword to the first guard's throat, a deadly look on his face, with Gawain just behind his shoulder. The knights looked as if they would carry through with their threats. Guinevere and Dawn raced after him. Guinevere put her hand on his shoulder and Dawn could only watch. His face was streaked with tears, as hers was. Dagonet had been his hero. Your hero is not supposed to die.

He reached for Dagonet's hand, but his hands were so little that he could only wrap it around his forefinger. The boy clasped onto it, slowly pulling the large ring that rested there. Dawn found herself staring at the hand. The hand she had fantasized about for nearly three days and had felt them on her skin for only a few precious hours. Guinevere looked up at her, the question in her eyes. Did she want it for herself?

Dawn shook her head no. He could have it. She had more memories of him than the child. Silent tears rolled down her cheek as she watched him. She knew exactly how he felt.

Guinevere and Arthur shared a look. Dawn bent her head as she laid her hand on Dagonet's body. Galahad lowered his sword as the guards backed away. Germanius chuckled nervously, turning his attentions to the knights.

"Our great knights. You are free now!" He gave them a happy smile that clashed with their moods. Dawn watched him from the corner of her eye. She wanted to hit him. From the looks of it, so did Bors. "Give me the papers. Come, come."

A soldier carrying a rectangular wooden box rushed across the courtyard. He opened it, showing six white scrolls.

"Your papers of safe conduct throughout the Roman Empire." Arthur walked towards him. "Take it, Arthur." Arthur stopped inches away from him.

"Bishop Germanius. Friend of my father." His look was stonily cold as he turned away from him, leaving the courtyard.

Lancelot strode up to the box. Clasping each hand around the six scrolls, he drew them from the box as he drew his swords in battle. He walked over to the knights, giving each a scroll.

"You are free now. You can go."

Galahad took his from Lancelot, and strode out of the yard. Gawain watched Galahad leave, then stared down at the paper he'd longed to hold for so long. Tristan gave his a simple glance, and lowering it to his side. Bors stared on, his anger shaking through him with every word Germanius said.

"Bors." Lancelot said. When he didn't respond, Lancelot smacked him in the chest with the scroll. "Bors!" He shook the two scrolls in his hand. "For Dagonet."

Bors glanced down at them, tears in his eyes. He took them in his hand and shook them.

"This doesn't make him a free man." He moved around Lancelot, anger rising in his voice. "He's already a free man. He's dead!" He threw the papers at Germanius' feet. Germanius stepped back.

Bors took Dagonet's horse back through the gateway. Gawain and Tristan stepped toward the Bishop. Gawain bent to pick up the papers, while Tristan stared at the soldier who carried the box. He picked it up, examining it. The soldier looked nervously at his superior, who gestured for him to take it.

Dawn watched, with loathing in her eyes at this man. She let Guinevere lead her away. They would bury him soon.

The ache burned deeply in her heart as she watched them cover the dirt over him. She couldn't stand anymore. She didn't want to lean on Guinevere any more. She knew it was probably rude for her to sit while everyone else stood, but she didn't care anymore.

They placed the box, now refilled with their papers of safe passage, atop the grave. They owed their lives, and their freedom to him. Dawn watched as Gawain stood back.

"Goodbye, old friend. We'll be along soon." He said, taking his place beside his brothers.

The other mourners left then. Arthur followed them, heading toward the village, but to another grave. Fulcinia led Alecto and Lucan away. Guinevere found herself torn between staying with Dawn or following Arthur.

"Go." Dawn whispered. "Go after him."

Guinevere did as she told her to. Dawn laid her head on her arms, watching the fire burn in the cup in front of his sword. The other knights left as well, save Bors. He took a sip from the wine jug as he sat beside Dagonet's grave. He poured out a little on the grave.

"Let's drink." He took another sip. "Get drunk."

"Can I?" Dawn asked, rising to sit beside him. "Please?"

"Yeah." Bors handed her the jug. She took a quick shot of it.

The bitter liquid burnt at her throat, but she welcomed it. Bors watched the tears that streamed down her face. He took the jug from her, and wrapped his arm around her.

"I loved him." She whispered.

"He knew that." Bors replied, taking another hit before handing it back to her.

They sat together, both trying to getting drunk enough to erase the pain they felt at their loss.

Guinevere stopped a foot or so behind him. She waited for him to acknowledge her. He glanced up at her, then turned back to face the Wall. She knelt beside him.

"A grave with no sword."

"It was my father's wish that if he died on this island, he would be buried with his knights."

"He died in battle?" She asked, resting her chin on the palm of her hand.

"It's a family tradition."

"I can see why you believe you have nothing left here." She rose to her feet. "Except what you and your knights have done. You have your deeds."

"Deeds in themselves are meaningless unless they're for some higher purpose." Arthur rose, continuing. "We have waged a war to protect a Rome that does not exist. Is that the deed I am to be judged by?"

"You stayed and fought when you didn't have to. You bloodied evil men when you could have run. You did all that for no reason?" She demanded. Arthur looked away.

"Pelagius told me once that there is no worse death than the end of hope."

"You and I are not the polite people that live in poems. We are blessed and cursed by our times."

"Perhaps the curse is of our own making. And the blessing."

"What are you afraid of, Arthur?" He looked away from her. "You're like this country - Britons with a Roman father." She said softly. "Rome is dead. This place, this land - your home - is the last outpost of freedom, of everything you hold dear."

She cupped his face as she had seen Dawn do with Dagonet. She looked into his eyes and spoke the words that needed to be said.

"These are your people." Her hand stayed there, and for a second they connected. In the end, she broke away. She turned her gaze toward Dawn.


	6. 6 Grief In Battle

Title: Protector Of The Weak

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 to R (for language and some mild naughtiness)

Disclaimer: Not mine. Joss owns all things BtVS, and somebody else owns K.A.

Spoilers: Season 7, and the movie _King Arthur_

Summary: Mourning, picking fights, and home.

A/N: OK . . .even though there was much pleading about going AU with Dagonet, I had to kill him anyway. It killed me to do it - I was bawling as I wrote it, hell I was bawling way before I even wrote it. But his death has a higher purpose that will be explained in the next chapter or so. If you all want to flay me alive, I understand completely. All this huge emotional build up and then I kill him off - you'd swear I'd been channeling Joss for a minute. I cut the last chapter a little short, mainly because it was approaching 20 pages and it was starting to sound long-winded, and because if I wrote anymore I was gonna have a breakdown myself.

I would have given a tissue warning, but I didn't want to come out and say I was killing him. . .

It also occurred to me that not everyone knows what Dagonet looks like. If you're interested, I did a few pics of them. They're not the greatest, but all I have is Microsoft Paint. You can find them here:

http:img. of them are with Dawn and Dag, and the third is after he dies.

__

6. Grief In Battle

Dawn held onto Bors' arm as he led her to the tavern. Their jug was empty. He set her at the nearest table. Dawn slumped forward. The ache was still there. She'd had too much to drink. She just wanted to sleep. She rose shakily from the table. Where was she supposed to sleep? Dawn didn't care. She'd sleep on the ground.

"Lady." A low voice said from her side.

"Wha'?" She demanded, her voice slurred. She blinked, trying to see who it was. All she could make out was a fuzzy looking head. "What do ya wan'?" Dawn asked, her voice raspy and broken sounding.

"You should not be out here alone." She felt the had on her shoulder, trying to guide her away from the tavern.

"Don't touch me!" She hissed. The last person who'd tried to help her had been Dagonet, and now he was dead. The hand quickly withdrew.

Lancelot had learned his lesson the first time. He held up both hands, amicably. He did not know why the other knights had chosen him for this task. Gawain would have been a better choice, or even Galahad. Bors was too drunk by now, and Tristan barely spoke to them. Arthur was too wracked with guilt over Dagonet's death as it was.

"The others knights wished for you to have this." He held the lone scroll high for her to see.

"What is it?" She asked, blinking at it.

"Dagonet's papers of freedom."

"What?"

"To remember him by. You let the boy have his ring, it was felt you should have something as well."

Dawn felt her knees weaken. Was he serious? She couldn't believe that he was suggesting a piece of paper was going to make the heartache just go away. She crossed her arms tightly against her chest.

"What is it that you think Dagonet and I shared?" She asked, her head pounding through the haze of alcohol in her system.

"Besides coupling?" Lancelot retorted.

Dawn slapped him hard across the cheek. Fresh tears formed in her eyes, making her vision even blurrier. She stared at him.

"You think a piece of paper is gonna make this hurt less?" She demanded. "I knew him for four days."

"This is what Dagonet died for -"

"No, Dagonet died for a lot of reasons. That piece of paper isn't what he died for. And you know it." She spat.

"It was this final quest for his freedom -"

"No, that may have been what it started out as." Dawn felt herself sobering up. "He died protecting innocent people from a great evil. He was a champion. That's was champions do. They sacrifice themselves so that others can live. They make the hard choices."

She thought about him. His smile, his laughter, his gentleness. Dawn doubted that she'd find another soul like him.

"I knew him for four days. Four little days. And I wish those four days could have lasted a lifetime." She lowered her head. "I loved him. That may be hard for you to get, but I know he loved me as well. That piece of paper doesn't mean a thing. I have my memories. That's all that I need of him."

Dawn turned, walking unsteadily back to the Tavern. Bors was there, and she felt the urge for another drink. She'd be hating herself in the morning, but she needed that now. Lancelot, still holding the scroll, watched her leave.

Dawn was contemplating how many drinks would make her pass out when Guinevere found her. She was staring at the flame, watching it dance. Bors had long since disappeared on her, looking for Vanora. No one else approached her. Not the guards or the knights, not the Roman soldiers or the villagers.

"Dawn. . ."

"Do ya like him?" Dawn asked, watching the flame.

"What?"

"Arthur - he's kinda hot in his own way. Do ya like him?" Dawn asked, staring at the other girl.

"He -"

"Cuz if ya do, you should really tell him." When Guinevere started to object, Dawn cut her off. "I think that if you really, _really_ like him, you'd do something 'bout it. Cuz tomorrow, you could be dead. Nobody knows what's gonna happen in the future. 'Cept me." Dawn giggled, taking a deep swing of the wine.

"I think you've had enough." Guinevere tried to take it from her.

"Yeah." Dawn's face became quite sober. "Yeah, I have. I've had too fucking much to drink." She threw the jug to the cobbled ground. "I think I should just get some food in me, maybe? Get rid of all the booze. Or 'sorb it or something."

"Yes."

Guinevere took her words to heart. She watched as Arthur went off by himself. She waited a moment, leaving the other girl in Fulcinia's capable hands, and followed him. It was true, she found herself attracted to Arthur. She slipped quietly into his room. He lay atop his bed, his eyes closed in quiet concentration. He jerked to consciousness as she drew back the thin veil that crossed the room.

He did not rise to greet her as she approached him. She said nothing as she took his face in her hands. She watched him, as she had been watching him from the moment he pulled her from the cage that had held her.

"What tomorrow brings . . .we cannot know." She said, lowering herself atop him as they shared their first kiss.

Dawn sunk down against the stone steps. Fulcinia was speaking nervously to someone else. Low whispers flew across the entire fort. Fires had been seen across the wall. The Saxon had come. She wanted to see them.

Dawn, now partially sober, climbed up the steps. No one tried to stop her. She leaned out over the opening. Hundreds of campfires dotted the countryside. Saxon fires. She clenched her fists at her sides. Even after all they had sacrificed, the inevitable happened. Dagonet's sacrifice amounted to diddly squat.

She turned, hearing a voice behind her. The other knights stood there, looks similar to her own on their faces. She laughed bitterly.

"The bastards decided to come and play." Dawn sighed. "Good thing I'm not all played out." She muttered to herself.

"Make way! Make way!" Someone shouted. She turned to see Arthur and Guinevere racing up the steps.

Arthur looked at his knights' faces then out to the sea of Saxons below them. They knew a great battle would be fought, but none of them wanted to fight it. Arthur stepped away, looking down at the people massed together. The people who looked to him for guidance. Turning back to his brothers, he spoke.

"Knights, my journey with you must end here. May God go with you." With that, he turned away and made his way down the stairs.

Lancelot shook his head in disbelief. Arthur could not mean to stay and fight the entire Saxon army with only the aid of the natives. Giving Guinevere a knowing look, he shook his head again, following Arthur. Guinevere followed them, leaving Dawn with the remaining four knights.

"Arthur, this is not Rome's fight. It is not your fight." When Arthur didn't respond, he continued. "All these long years we've been together, the trials we've face, the blood we've shed. What was it all for, if not for the reward of freedom? And now when we are so close, when it is finally within our grasp. . . " He latched onto Arthur's arm, getting him stop. "Look at me! Does it all count for nothing?"

"You ask me that? You who know me best of all?" Arthur asked, before turning and continuing on his way. Lancelot ran to stand before him.

"Then do not do this. Only certain death awaits you here. Arthur, I beg you! For our friendship's sake, I beg you!" Arthur put his hand on Lancelot's shoulder, stopping him.

"You be my friend now and do not dissuade me. Seize the freedom you have earned and live it for the both of us. I cannot follow you, Lancelot." Tears came to Lancelot's eyes as Arthur continued. "I now know that all the blood I have shed, all the lives I have taken have led me to this moment." Patting the side of Lancelot's head, he walked around his friend, continuing on his mission.

Dawn watched from the wall. Bors put a hand on her shoulder, urging her to look at him.

"Vanora will take you in her cart." He said quietly.

"Take me?" Dawn asked, dumbfounded. "Take me where?"

"With us, when we leave." Bors' face was grim as he spoke. "Dag would have wanted me to look out for you."

"I'm not going." She replied.

"Whadda ya mean, you're not going?"

"I'm not leaving. I'm staying and I'm fighting."

"Arthur won't let you fight." Galahad shook his head.

"No, but Guinevere will." Dawn cocked an eyebrow. "You were all so quick to call me a Woad, that I think I might just become one."

"One battle does not make you a warrior." Tristan said, staring fixedly on her.

"No, it doesn't. Which is damn good for me that that wasn't my first battle. I've been through more battles than I can even count."

"You're drunk." Gawain replied.

"I think I'm more sober than I've been in a long time." Dawn sighed, turning to leave.

"Lady, you can't fight this battle." Bors said quietly.

"Yeah? Who's gonna stop me?" Dawn replied, making her way down the steps to Guinevere's side.

"So I've decided that I want to fight." Dawn said, coming to stand beside. "And I was told that Arthur wouldn't let me fight. Basically, the short version is that I wanna be a Woad."

"You want to be a Woad?"

"You're my sister in arms, and a Woad. I wanna fight, Guinevere." Her look was deadly calm as she spoke.

"I go to meet with Merlin in an hour to prepare for battle." Guinevere looked at where Lancelot stood. "Bring all the weapons you have with you and meet me near the tavern."

"Gotcha."

__

2005

Dawn had been missing now for almost two days. Buffy, Xander, and even Faith had come to help in the search for the missing Scooby. Willow worked the shadows, trying to get a fix on Dawn. The closest she got was a strong vibe over by one archeological dig near the Wall.

"She was there, for a really long time." Willow sighed. "But it's weird, because it's not a new shadow."

"New shadow? What does that mean, Will?" Buffy asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Theoretically, everything and every person leaves behind a shadow, like a signature of themselves. Especially when there are high emotions exerted. Like at the frat house when you and Riley were . . ." Willow cut herself off. "And by taping into the magics, I can see the shadows more clearly than everyone else."

"How would this help us find Dawnie?" Xander asked.

"Well, the shadow of the Dawn I'm seeing is - she's grieving."

"Grieving?" Buffy asked.

"That's the only way I can describe it. But that's not the weird part." Willow glanced nervously at Giles. "This shadow I'm seeing? It's not new, it's old. Really old."

"How old, Willow?"

"About fifteen hundred years old."

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467

Guinevere led Dawn through the woods. Dawn sighed as she strode through the tall grass, skirt hiked up so she wouldn't trip on it. She hadn't said goodbye to any of the knights, she merely caught Bors' eyes and gave her drinking buddy a small smile. He would live, and raise his children. He would most likely take Lucan in as well, remembering how much his friend had cared for the child. Tristan had nodded to her as she had left. It was odd, she had barely spoken a word to the man, but he out of all the other knights, seemed to respect her decision the most.

They were greeted at the edge of the forest by men covered in pale blue body paint, tribal tattoos marking their faces and chests. Guinevere said something in her native tongue, and gestured to Dawn. They nodded and led them through the dark woods to a single fire. Three men, older than most she'd seen since her arrival, sat before it. Guinevere spoke again, and the middle man stared at her curiously. He seemed wiser than the others.

"Merlin?" Dawn asked quietly.

"Yes. I am Merlin."

"I wish to fight alongside the Woads against the Saxons." She said calmly.

"No man wishes to fight."

"I do." She tilted her head to the side. "But then I am not a man."

Merlin stared at her for a moment. He murmured something to Guinevere and the other men. Within a few moments, they were alone. Merlin rose to his feet and walked closer to her.

"Guinevere told me you were a wise man. Tell me, Merlin, have you heard of the whispered tales of creatures not of this earth?" Dawn asked, her eyes focused on the fire. "Of demons?"

"We all have demons that haunt us." He said nonchalantly.

"Have you heard of the demons that look like humans? That drink the blood of humans?"

"I have heard many things." He replied.

"And of their greatest enemy? A girl chosen to hunt them. A girl of great strength."

"Yes." He stared at her.

"Good."

"Are you such a girl?" Merlin asked.

"No, but I was trained by one. I can fight. I am strong, I am seasoned."

"Guinevere says you have a grudge with the Saxon."

"I do. They killed the man I loved."

"One of the great knights." Merlin said, sitting back by the fire.

"Yes."

"Is this a wise choice? To fight for something you do not truly believe in?" Merlin questioned her.

"I never said I didn't believe in it. I just said I wanted to fight them."

"This does not mean the same thing."

"It's a good cause. Innocent people would die if the Saxons conquer your island."

Merlin considered this for a moment, remembering Guinevere's words to him. He looked at her beneath hooded eyes, considering her words.

"You are not of this land. Guinevere has said your home is many years from here."

"It is."

"Something in your voice tells me that this does not mean what I believe it to mean." Merlin questioned her with his eyes.

"It probably doesn't."

"You do not mean, then, that it would take you a year or so to travel there."

"It would take me a thousand years and more to travel to my home." Dawn said bluntly. "I have no way to return there, so this is now my home."

Merlin studied the girl. She had accepted her destiny, as cruel as it might seem. She wished to be used to the best of her abilities. Still he hesitated in sealing that fate.

"Guinevere has said you are a brave fighter. She has asked that you fight beside her, as one of us."

"Then -"

"Go, prepare for the battle."

__

2005

Buffy stared at her best friend of nearly nine years in shock. This couldn't be happening. How could Dawn's spirit-thingy be fifteen hundred years in the past?

"Are you saying something threw her back in time?" Xander asked.

"No, something sent her back." Willow said, not that it made much difference.

"Something sent her? Like a demon? What kind of demon has that power?" Buffy asked.

"None. I mean, there's no demon capable of that kind of power." Giles sighed, removing his glasses. "At least, none that are still alive."

"Then what -" Buffy asked.

"Well, we've done some thinking. The only ones capable of that kind of power is Dawn."

"Because she was the key?" Xander asked.

"And still remains the key." Buffy said quietly.

"But that opens to Glory's hell dimension, not into the past." Xander pointed out.

"Unless someone tinkered with it." Willow replied, looking unhappy about saying this.

"Who -" Xander started to ask.

"The Powers." Buffy said quietly. "The Powers that Be."

"The what now?" Xander said.

"The Powers that Be. They call the Champions of the Good side. Whistler, the demon that told me how to stop Angel, he worked for them."  
"They were always working through Angel in L.A." Willow said. "Before . . ."

"So the Powers hijacked Dawnie to go back in time?" Xander asked. "Why?"

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467

The people in the fort began packing their belongings as soon as the Saxons had been spotted outside the wall. They began evacuating around the same time Guinevere and Dawn had left for their meeting with Merlin. Arthur prepared for battle. He was dressed in full battle armor, his standard in his hand and Excalibur at his side. He watched from atop the hillside as his people fled to safety.

On the fields closest to the doors of the gates, large bundles of tar-covered hay burned, sending great columns of gray smoke up into the sky making sight nearly impossible. From the fields, Arthur's knights could barely make out his figure. Bors looked up at the hill. Drawing his sword, Bors' turned his horse up the slope. Stopping, he yelled.

"Artorius!" He tapped his sword across his heart before raising it. "_Rus!_"

There was no reply from their commander for a few moments. Then, raising his great standard he yelled back.

"_RUS!_"

From the forest, the Woad army appeared. Each man and woman was covered in the blue tribal paint. Guinevere stood at the head, her tribe's symbols painted onto her flesh. Dawn stood beside her, her sword at her hip, hair pulled back and high on her head. Painted tattoos covered her shoulder and face, and the blue paint of the Woads covered the rest of her visible flesh. They watched as Arthur went down to speak with the Saxon.

The great gates opened, and Arthur rode through them, meeting Saxon leader Cerdic in the center of the field.

"Arthur." Cerdic said sighing. "Hm. Wherever I go on this wretched island I hear your name. Always half-whispered, as if you were a . . . god." They began circling each other. "All I see is flesh, blood. No more god than the creature you're sitting on."

"Speak your terms, Saxon."

"The Romans have left you. Who are you fighting for?"

"I fight for a cause beyond Rome's or your understanding."

"Ah. You come to beg a truce. You should be on your knees."

"I came to see your face," Arthur replied, pointing Excalibur at him. "So that I alone may find you on the battlefield. And it would be good for you to mark my face, Saxon, for the next time you see it, it will be the last thing you see on this earth."

"Ah." He watched as Arthur rode away. "Ah, finally. A man worth killing." He said, turning back to his men.

Dawn watched Arthur return. She'd been worried that the Saxon would kill him. Glancing over at Guinevere, she could see that the other woman had thought along those same lines.

Dawn looked back up at the hill, a movement coming from the south catching her eye. Another rider, in full battle armor appeared beside Arthur on the hill. He was soon joined by four more. Dawn let out a small sigh.

"They came back to fight." She murmured.

The gate remained open. It was an invitation. Cerdic ordered Cynric's remaining infantry inside the walls. The Saxons moved cautiously towards the doors. Atop the hill, Arthur spoke to his men before the battle.

"Knights, the gift of freedom is yours by right. But the home we seek resides not in some distant land. It's in us and in our actions on this day. If this be our destiny, then so be it. But let history remember that as free men we chose to make it so." Drawing Excalibur and raising it high into the air, Arthur yelled. "_RUS!_"

Each knight jammed his standard into the hill as they joined him in yelling the Sarmatian battle cry. Tristan reached for his bow and took aim. He let the arrow fly high over the wall, where it flew into the large tree that stood there. He did not know that his arrow had hit the Saxon spy.

The first wave of Saxon warriors were met with thick, acidy smoke that blurred the vision and choked the lungs. The gates closed behind them and they marched toward the six knights. From the forest, the Woads took aim. Guinevere tipped her bow higher, as she had learned at the ice battle. The others copied her. They let the arrows fly.

Many Saxons, caught off guard, fell victim to the arrows. As the others hid beneath their shields, the knights rode through them, catching them off guard once more. More lay dead on the battlefield. The Woads prepared a second volley, and a third. In the confusion, the Saxons began firing at themselves, each believing to be shooting at the knights. Only one Saxon escaped the battlefield alive. But when he reached Cerdic, claiming the knights to be demons, he was killed.

Cerdic ordered the main army through. The real battle had yet to begin.

A/N: Ok, there you go. It's shorter than the last three chapters, but it works better this way. Feedback is always appreciated.


	7. 7 These Glorious Times

Title: Protector Of The Weak

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 to R (for language and some mild naughtiness)

Disclaimer: Not mine. Joss owns all things BtVS, and somebody else owns K.A.

Spoilers: Season 7, and the movie _King Arthur_

Summary: The battle leads them ever home.

A/N: We're getting down to the final few chapters. There's going to be nine total. I'm glad you're all liking the story! I added two more images to the set.  
Padawan: that pic is twenty times better than mine. Thanks for sharing, I adore it!

( http:img. )  
As for other KA crossovers - I have at least two more in the works (an Illyria/Tristan one for Fic for All, and the continuation of Plight of the Hawk(which is Buffy/Tristan), and my Lancelot/Buffy (Old Souls) one may be continued as well.)  
I got the idea for this story while I was writing OS and PotH. Originally, young Dawn was going to fall back in time and get saved by Dagonet, then pop back home. I'm really glad I didn't stick to that.  
I found a song that fits perfectly in chapter six. Dido's _My Lover's Gone.  
_Also - slight gore warning.

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7. These Glorious Times

As the Saxon army crossed through the gates, they were met with the sight of their dead. Saxon bodies lay strewn across the land. Cerdic gritted his teeth as he ordered his troops to divide. He took the side of Arthur, ordering Cynric to the side of Guinevere and the other Woads.

He didn't know then how right his decision had been. He had offered up Dagonet's killer to the women who wished him dead.

The Saxon war chant could be heard. Dawn tightened her grip on the bow. She followed Guinevere's gaze up at Merlin. He gave a small signal, and from behind him emerged the numerous catapults, each being pulled by a half dozen Woads. Along the line of archers in the woods, plain arrows were being replaced with fire arrows. Dawn took a small breath, touching her thumb to the painted tattoo on her forehead. It was a small sword, representing Dagonet. She held her bow forward for them to light it.

Guinevere caught the gleam of Arthur's sword in the air. Raising her bow, the others quickly followed. They let them fly across the air, many finding purchase in the Saxons, while the others lit the river of tar that spread directly across the middle of the field. The Saxons were cut off from each other by a river of fire.

Guinevere let out a war cry, her axe raised high. The adrenalin was pumping through Dawn's veins as the Woads raced out to the battle. Her bow and slung over her shoulder, a hand axe similar to Guinevere's, a long dagger, her stiletto riding high on her thigh, and broadsword strapped to her hip, Dawn followed. The Saxons would not win.

Guinevere blocked the first Saxon, spinning her back to him as she drove her axe into his belly and her short sword across his throat. Beside her, Dawn had ducked the overhead swing of a Saxon sword, jabbing the long dagger into his chest. Behind her another Saxon was overwhelming a Woad. She kicked at the back of his knees, knocking him off balance. When the Saxon turned to face her, she kicked hard between his legs before cutting across his throat with the dagger. Shoved herself up off the ground just in time to see the six knights ride into battle.

Flaming balls of fire exploded at the feet of the Saxons, as Merlin let the catapults rip to life. Tristan fired off two arrows into the Saxons. Gawain's axe imbedded itself in the chest of a Saxon.

Dawn soon lost track of the Knights as well as Guinevere. Her training as a watcher had kicked in. There were three Saxons closet to her. Charging the first, she uppercut with the edge of the axe, while kicking out the knee of another. Blood splatter her face as she slammed the axe into the back of the fallen soldier. Another Saxon charged her. Bracing herself for the impact, she kicked up her foot at the last second, using his own weight to knock her to the ground and lift him up and over her head. The dagger was jammed deep into the chest. She hadn't missed the heart this time.

Not far ahead of her, a large Saxon was decimating every Woad who came to stand up against him. She saw Guinevere glance back at her, before she charged the Saxon. She made two deep gashes at his back before running off. Dawn grinned as she sliced her broadsword across his back, turning him once more. Taking this distraction, Guinevere pounced on his back, as she had seen Dawn do to the Roman guards. He threw her from him. The Saxon kicked her hard in the face, knocking her to her back. Just as he raised his axe to kill her, another female Woad raced through, embedding her sword deep into his side.

Guinevere ducked away, as more Woad women joined in on the attack. One chopped at his knees with her axe, while two others slashed at his arms. They wrestled him to his knees, their swords and daggers plunging into him. Guinevere jumped on his back once more, strangling him. When she looked up from this task, she saw the leader who had been at the ice battle. She caught Dawn's eye. She watched the girl go stiff as she recognized him. Dawn put on a burst of speed, hurtling over the falling body of the Saxon she had just finished off.

Something caught her eye across the battlefield. For one crystal clear second, Dawn could see each knight. She saw Gawain fight off three Saxons, saw Tristan parry with the Saxon leader, watched in horror was Bors took a spear to the back. Galahad didn't see the Saxon behind him until it was almost too late. She whipped up her bow and set an arrow flying straight into the throat of the Saxon. Bors rose to his feet, and she felt her breath return to her.

There was a sharp pain to her left arm. She whirled around, axe in hand, driving it deep into the belly of a Saxon. Screaming, she raced toward Cynric.

Guinevere attacked with her sword first, striking from above. When he blocked with his shield, she chopped at him with her axe. Spinning away from him, it almost seemed like a dance. Dawn remembered Spike saying that about sparring with Buffy, that it was a dance. Guinevere backed away, her yells egging him on to follow her. Dawn fought her way through the crowds of fighters. Her eye was pegged on Cynric. She was not the only one who watched, for across the fire, the battle had caught the eye of Lancelot.

Dawn jumped over bodies, making her way across the battlefield. She watched as Guinevere was sliced by Cynric's blade. Dawn raced as she saw Guinevere stumble. Using a Saxon shield as a spring board, Dawn propelled herself at Cynric's back. Clamping her body onto his tightly, she jammed her stiletto deep into his armor. He tried to throw her, but she dug her nails deep into the skin of his neck. She screamed loudly into his face, her anger and pain bursting through her as she yanked the thin dagger from his chest.

That was all the opportunity he needed. Cynric yanked hard on her arm, throwing her over his shoulder. Dawn hit the ground with a loud thud. She could see stars above her, and the upraised blade of the man who was directly responsible for Dagonet's death.

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2005

Willow stood completely still as the form raced past her. It was definitely Dawn's shadow, but it looked more feral. It barely resembled the gental girl she knew. For one, she was in the skimpiest leather outfit that Willow had ever seen. She had a feeling even Vamp Willow would have been shocked to see that outfit.

She followed it, seeing other shadows mingling. All interconnected. Boosting her power, she focused on the ones interwoven with Dawn's shadow. There were four men and a woman. She watched in silence as the scene unfolded before her.

One of the men - a soldier by the looks of it - was in the middle of a completely baffling sword fight. The second one took a spear into the back. Willow flinched away from the shadow. She watched as he wrenched it from his back. She felt dizzy. The third man didn't see the enemy rise up to attack him. But someone did, because a ghostly arrow flew through the air. Willow jumped back, even though she knew it couldn't hurt her. She turned to see Dawn's shadow lower the bow. She turned her attention to the final man, who had the bodies of three other men at her feet.

Willow had gotten so wrapped up in watching the battle spill before her that she didn't notice Buffy come up beside her. When the slayer put a hand on her shoulder, Willow jumped nearly a foot in the air.

"Oh!"

"Will, what's wrong?"

"Sorry, got kinda wrapped up in the shadow play." Willow gasped.

"Shadow play? I thought you were looking for Dawn's shadow?"

"Yeah, and I totally found it." Willow chuckled nervously. "Did the Powers representative get here yet?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Because Dawn's sort of trapped somewhere." Willow replied.

"Trapped? Trapped where?" Buffy demanded.

"In the middle of a war."

"A war?" Buffy yelled. "We have to get her out of there before she gets herself killed!"

Willow watched as the slayer raced over to where the car was pulling up. She turned back and caught a glimpse of what Dawn's shadow was up to. Willow's eyes widened in shock.

"I think we kinda have to worry more about her killing someone else." Willow muttered to herself.

The liaison to the Powers that Be was a very familiar face. He wore a fedora hat, a tacky Hawaiian shirt under a sports coat. Buffy felt her face go completely blank as she stared up into Whistler's face. He smiled at her, but his smile didn't last very long. Mainly due to the fact that his jaw felt like it had been hit with a two ton sledge hammer.

"What did they do with my sister?" Buffy demanded.

"Well that's a fine 'how-do-you-do"." Whistler groaned, rubbing his jaw.

"Buffy -" Giles said cautiously.

"She's trapped in the middle of a war! She could be killed! She's not a warrior." Buffy snapped. "She's a watcher. Her job is to watch, not fight. She's not a champion for the Powers!"

"Yeah, well we're running kinda low on that variety right now." Whistler retorted. "Last one we got ended up working for the bad guys, remember?"

"She's an innocent."

"No, she's the Key." Whistler said. "There's a difference."

"What -" Buffy started to say, only to be cut off by Willow's yell.

"Buffy, Dawn's in trouble! The bad guy, he's gonna kill her!"

"Get her back, now, Whistler!" Buffy yelled.

"I don't have that kind of power!" Whistler snapped.

"Then do your job - tell them to bring her back!"

"Are all you slayers so bossy?" Whistler demanded, concentrating hard on reaching the Powers before she decided to hit him again.

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467

Out of nowhere, a blur of blue streaked in front of Dawn. Guinevere swung her axe at him with all her strength. He blocked it with his shield. She thrust at him again, but Cynric caught a hold of her blade, pinning her. He backhanded her with his shield, catching her across the face. Guinevere fell hard, landing on her back. Cynric raised his sword to slice down on her, but was once again blocked by another sword.

Lancelot kicked him hard in the stomach, knocking him away from the fallen Guinevere. She raced to Dawn's side. She urged the other girl to her feet, ducking away from another Saxon blade. Guinevere let go of Dawn's arm, turning to fight off her attacker.

Dawn's attention was drawn across the flames once more. She'd blocked the sounds of death and fighting out, hearing Dagonet's calming voice resonate through her, telling her about his home, his brothers.

She watched as Tristan fell again, her heart beating faster, tearing herself away from Guinevere. No, another knight couldn't die. She wouldn't let it happen. Dawn drew her bow. Someone had to cover him, like he'd helped cover her when she'd been out on the ice trying to save Dagonet. She set an arrow in the bow, taking her aim. Before she could even fire, she watched in absolute horror as the Saxon drove his sword into Tristan's ribs. She let out a pained cry and aimed for the Saxon's head.

Her shot never flew. Dawn felt something land hard on her. She groaned, kicking and scratching at the dying man atop of her. When she finally got to her feet, she watched as Tristan's lifeless body fell at the feet of Cerdic. Dawn turned away, watching as Arthur battled his way over to the Saxon. He would settle this grudge. She had her own to settle.

Dawn spun around, looking for Cynric once more. He was no longer fighting with Lancelot, because he was busy fighting another Saxon. Dawn searched frantically, hoping to catch sight of him. She dodged through the fighters, slashing at the enemies who stood in her way. Finally, she spotted him, a Saxon crossbow in her hands. He was aiming it across the field at someone. The one phrase, uttered from Tristan's lips two days ago beat it's way through her head.

"Armor-piercing." She murmured. She turned to Lancelot, trying to yell. "LANCELOT! LOOK OUT!"

His whole body moved with the impact of the arrow. He began to fall back a little. Lancelot drew back his arm and threw his blade. Dawn stared in confusion for a minutes, until she heard the bone crunch thwack of the blade imbedding itself into Cynric's chest. She watched Lancelot stumble across the battlefield as Cynric dropped to his knees. He wasn't dead! The bastard wasn't dead yet.

Dawn felt her heart stop. No, not - Lancelot, not when they'd already lost Tristan. She watched as Guinevere raced towards Lancelot. There was a Saxon, hot on her heels. Dawn cocked the bow, pulling back on the string. The arrow hit it's target dead on.

__

2005

Willow felt her heart clench as she watched Dawn fire the bow again. When had little Dawnie learned how to do that? She looked over her shoulder at Buffy. They were running out of time. They needed to get Dawn out of there. Willow turned back, seeing the warrior raise the sword high above Dawn. There was no one to stop it from falling this time.

"Buffy!" Willow cried. "Buffy, she's out of time!"

"Whistler!"

"It's done!" Whistler snapped.

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467

Lancelot saw the arrow whiz past him as he stumbled across the bloodied field to reach the Saxon. He needed to watch this man die, needed to make sure he was dead. Lancelot latched onto his sword handle, feeling his blood bubble into his mouth. He yanked it from the Saxon's chest, raising it high. Before it could pierce the Saxon, Cynric grabbed his wrist, trying to stop his death.

With one final burst of strength, Lancelot drove the sword through Cynric's throat. He shoved the Saxon's body to the ground, leaving his sword behind. He could feel the end coming close. Slumping to his side on the ground, he looked out across the battlefield. There, standing in a haze of bright green light, was Dawn. Her bow was lowered to her side, as she stared open mouthed at him.

Behind her, a Saxon raised his sword, readying to bury it into her. But the green light grew brighter, stronger. Lancelot was nearly blinded by the light, as it absorbed Dawn. The Saxon's blow fell on empty air. Lancelot watched as the world went black.

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2005

A bright green glare burst across the open field. Willow, Buffy, Whistler, Xander, and Giles were all blown back by the force of the green light. A lone figure stood in that field. It did not stand for very long. Her skin was blue, and dark blue painted tattoos cover her exposed flesh. Blood was splattered across her face, and there were several shallow cuts marring her once unblemished skin. Two bright white scars stood out vividly on her abdomen. She was marked by battle, and still wore the instruments of war.

Dawn Summers stared, unbelieving at the sight before her. Her friends and family lay on the grass that, only moments ago, had held the bodies of the dead. Dawn blinked back the tears in her eyes. The black engulfed her as she collapsed to the ground.

She was home.

Buffy raced to Dawn's side. What the hell had happened to her little sister? She looked frantically at her friends. Xander and Willow knelt beside her, concern cloudling their faces. Giles was talking quickly into his cell phone, ordering a helicopter to come take Dawn to the Council's medical center.

"What happened to her?" She yelled, staring fixedly on Whistler.

"I only knew that they sent her back. I don't have any of the info on what happened. That's not my job."

"Not your job? My sister -"

"I'm a balance demon, slayer. I don't get info on the big projects."

"Big projects?" Buffy demanded.

"The helicopter will be here momentarily." Giles said quietly, interrupting their conversation, looking down at the young woman.

"God." Xander said quietly, "She must have been through hell."

"It must have. For her pain to leave such a strong shadow. . ." Willow trailed off.

"She probably just wanted to get home." Buffy whispered, taking Dawn's hand in hers.

Within moments, they had loaded the younger woman in to the helicopter. She slept for three days straight. She was given a full physical, her wounds were bandaged, and the clothing and weapons hidden. They had no intention of telling her that she'd been sent back in time, hoping that she would think it was all just a really bad dream. But that was before the results of the physical came back.

Bright, golden sunlight poured through the blinds. She blinked her eyes open, trying to blot out the sunlight. Dawn slowly pushed herself up, leaning back on the firm mattress. Unshed tears clogged in her throat as she remembered all that had happened in the last five days. Now she was home, safe at home. Everything would be -

Dawn sighed. It felt a thousand times worse. She felt more disconnected from it than she had when she was back there. She had had a purpose. Now it just felt like it had been a dream.

She let the tears slip over her cheeks. Not only was Dagonet dead, Tristan and Lancelot had died as well. Who even knew what happened to the rest of them? Bors had been injured, and Gawain and Galahad, what of them? They'd been nearest to the wall. And Guinevere - had she survived? Would Arthur make it through?

There was a soft knocking on the door, but it still made her jump. Giles stood in the doorway, a tray in his hands. She smiled sadly at him.

"Dawn, I thought you might like some tea and something to eat?" He asked, nodding to the tray. Cookies, crackers, and two steaming tea cups were set on it.

"Tea?" She rasped. Did her voice sound that bad? "Please."

Giles came further into the room, shutting the door behind her. Dawn leaned back against the pillows as he set the tray down. She watched as he put three sugar cubes into her cup. She smiled as Giles handed her the steaming cup. While she sipped at it, he contemplated the best way to ask this question. He was like a father to the girl, he wasn't sure if she'd be comfortable talking about it with him.

"Dawn, we need to ask you some very important questions." Giles started, as gently as he could.

"I - I don't think I can talk about it just yet." Dawn stared into the depths of the cup.

"Dawn, I know this is painful for you -"

"Painful? It's - it's a thousand times worse than that." Dawn sniffled. She didn't want to talk about it.

"There are several choices you need to make." Giles tried again, more gently. "There's not much time to act before those choices are no longer an option. We're all here for you, you know you can ask or tell us anything."

Dawn looked up from the cup. What was he talking about? She had a choice on how long she grieved? She must have given him a funny look, because Giles continued on saying that if she wasn't comfortable with this, then they could look into something else.

"Wait a minute!" Dawn cried, holding up her hands. "Giles, what are you talking about?"

"Your - mishap." He said cautiously.

"My trip back in time?"

"And -erm, the things that happened when you were-"

"Are you trying to talk to me about the battle?" Were they all afraid she was going to go evil on them and start killing people because Dagonet had died, like Willow had when Tara had died?

"No, about -" Giles took off his glasses and started cleaning them.

"Then what -"

"It's about your rape."

"My what?" Dawn screeched.

Dawn thought she was going to hyperventilate. Or just keel over dead. Either one of those seemed pretty likely to happen right now. Giles had finally left the room, which was something she was extremely grateful for. On the downside, she was stuck in the same room with her very angry sister and Willow.

"You slept with some random guy after knowing him for two days?" Buffy demanded, pacing back and forth. "You didn't know if he had a disease or anything, Dawn!"

"It wasn't -"

"And you didn't use protection!"

"'Protection' hadn't been invented yet." Dawn snorted.

"That's not the point! What have I always told you about sex?" Buffy asked.

"Buffy, I'm not -" Willow started to say, looking between the angry and upset faces of the two sisters.

"That if I had it, you'd use the guy as garden fodder." Dawn retorted. "Good luck in finding his body."

Dawn crossed her arms over her chest. How in the world was she going to get through this? It was bad enough trying to explain to them what he'd meant to her. It wasn't like she was this mystical virgin who got deflowered violently by some cave man. It wasn't like Dagonet had been a demon, Buffy's first had been Angel and he was a vampire! Buffy stared at her sister, her mouth clamped tightly together.

"Dawnie?" Willow asked softly.

"What?" She asked harshly.

"Did you - was he a nice guy?" Willow babbled.

"A nice guy? That's all you could come up with?" Buffy demanded.

"I panicked!" Willow cried.

"He was." Dawn said softly. "He was kind and gentle. He didn't force me." Dawn smiled, looking up at them. "If anyone did the forcing, it was me. I begged him to let me sleep with him."

"Dawn -"

"He had a name, you know. It's the most unusual name I've ever heard. Dagonet. He was a Sarmatian knight. He -" Her voice caught as she let out a shaky breath. "He was protective, and didn't like to talk very much. He would have done anything to keep people safe if he could. He'd even die for them."

"He died." Willow said quietly, seeing the pained look in the younger woman's eyes.

"He died a hero. Took out half an army to make sure innocent people would live."

Buffy sat down, staring at her sister with a completely dumbfounded expression. She was so sad. Had Dawnie, her baby sister, actually fallen in love? She was too young to fall that hard, that fast for some guy who was years older than her. But there was a nagging little voice in the back of her mind. She'd fallen in love with Angel when she was sixteen and he was hundreds of years older than her. Why couldn't Dawn?

"Did you love him?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah. I did."

Buffy rose to her feet. This wasn't her decision to make, no matter how much she wished it were. She sat next to Dawn, taking her hand. She still remembered when Mom and Dad had brought her home from the hospital. It was still important, even if it was just a fake memory.

"What do you want to do?" Buffy asked.

"I -" Dawn paused for a moment, taking a deep breath. There wasn't even a choice. "I want to have the baby."

"Then we'll be there for you." Buffy smiled. "This baby is gonna be so spoiled."

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467

Arthur fell to his knees as the blade sliced across his back. He let out a pained groan. He could not die, he must avenge his knights and his people. He must not let the Saxons win and destroy everything he and his knights had fought for and died to protect. He heard the footsteps of the Saxon behind him. Arthur opened his eyes, and saw a small green flash of light from across the fire. He blinked, and heard the strained grunt behind him. Clutching Excalibur tightly in his hand, he thrust the sword up, impaling the Saxon once. Twice.

Pulling it free, he rose to his feet. Whirling around, he slashed at his chest, Excalibur slicing deep into the flesh. Cerdic fell heavily to his knees. He stared down at the blood oozing from the wound in disbelief. He rolled his head up, facing the man who would end his life. Arthur strode over to him, grasping Cerdic's head by his own hair.

"Arthur." He rasped, as Arthur plunged Excalibur through the man one final time.

As the body dropped, Arthur looked over to the other body. Tristan, his most trusted guide, lie there. His arms were spread apart, and blood ran from his wounds. Arthur stood there, his body sagging in both relief that the battle was done and grief at the loss of another dear friend.

The fighting had long since ended. Bodies were strewn across the field. Arthur looked up then. Across the flames, he could see Guinevere drop to her knees. Arthur ran, fear fueling him onward. As he neared her, he saw the prone body of his dearest friend. He fell to his knees beside Lancelot's body, stabbing Excalibur into the ground beside him. Taking Lancelot's head in his hands, he felt the raw grief flow through him.

"It was my life to be taken!" He yelled up to the heavens, yelling at the God who had failed him in this one request. "Not this! Never this!"

Guinevere watched him closely. Confusion crossed her face, but she never took her eyes off of him. Three figures crossed over to them. Galahad, Bors bearing Tristan's body, and Gawain came to stand beside them. Bors, weakened from the spear in his back, stumbled under Tristan's weight. Galahad and Gawain grabbed it as Bors fell to his knees. Rising, he stared down at the body of Lancelot. His eyes read only one expression - disbelief. Arthur looked up at his remaining knights, all of them bleeding, bruised, and grieving.

"My brave knights, I have failed you." Arthur said, his voice wrought with emotion. "I neither took you off this island, nor shared your fate."

Words spoken in the Woad language hit their ears. They all turned to stare at Merlin. He strode across the field to them, coming to pause just behind Guinevere. Bors backed away from him. Merlin looked into the faces of the men who had survived this battle. They would be forever changed. He knew this. Looking down at Arthur, and placing a hand on his face, Merlin spoke.

"No fate is shared." He said quietly. Turning to the other knights, he spoke it again, this time louder than the last. "No fate is shared.

Bors looked down, absorbing what Merlin had said. They'd been cut in half. First Dagonet -. Bors stopped. He looked around him frantically. Where was she? He'd made an oath on Dagonet's grave that he would look out for the woman. He couldn't not keep this oath. Dagonet had been his best friend.

"Where is she?" He snapped at Guinevere. "Where's the girl?"

"Dawn?" Guinevere asked. She looked around her. The girl was no where to be seen. "I - I do not know. She was -"

"She is gone." Merlin paused, turning back to them. "Her fate is no longer part of ours."

Bors dropped heavily to the ground. He'd failed to protect her. He'd failed Dagonet. Beside him, tears came to Guinevere's eyes. She owed her life to three people: Arthur for pulling her from the cage, Lancelot for stopping the Saxon, and Dawn. Guinevere closed her eyes. She hoped, that wherever her sister in arms was, that she was happy and safely in the arms of Dagonet once more.

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2005

Three weeks had passed, and Dawn felt the pain beginning to dull. She'd gone back to work, manning one of the many desks the Council had to offer. Buffy had agreed with her that she should go back to work, but that she was off active patrol. After the battle, Dawn was less than eager to get back into the regular swing of things. It still hurt. She absently rubbed at her still flat stomach. She still had a part of him inside her. She'd always have him with her, in one way or another.

Dawn sighed, staring at the computer screen. She'd done thousands of searches, looking to see if she could find anything in history archives that had his name. She tapped her pencil against the desk in frustration. All she'd found about him in the Arthurian legends were references to Sir Dagonet the court jester. If only they'd seen the man. The one thing they had managed to get right was his big heart. Dawn felt the pencil slip from her fingers. Sighing, she bent down below her desk to get it.

Buffy and Xander had been walking into the office, not seeing her. They were talking about how she was handling things.

"Have you told her yet?"

"No." Buffy sighed. "She's finally moving on. She's been so worried about the baby that she hasn't even asked how she got there. I don't want to get her hopes up."

"Buffy, we have to tell her. Sooner or later she's gonna start asking about how she got there."

"I can't tell her that the Powers screwed her over." Buffy sighed. "She might ask them to bring this guy back to life or pull him from his heaven. She might even ask them to send her back so she'll have more time with him or something. I don't want her to get hurt again."

"It's a little late for that." Dawn said, pulling herself up from behind the desk.

A/N: Okay, there is a legend about Dagonet blush. He's just portrayed very badly.  
And can I say just how smart my readers are? cough baby cough


	8. 8 Lullaby

Title: Protector Of The Weak

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 to R (for language and some mild naughtiness)

Disclaimer: Not mine. Joss owns all things BtVS, and somebody else owns K.A.

Spoilers: Season 7, and the movie _King Arthur_

Summary: Baby names, bitter words, ordinary threats, and strange meetings.

A/N: I've been re-reading this, and dear God, have I been borrowing. Now, when I say that, I mean I've been shoving movie quotes throughout this whole thing or have been using them when I write a scene (like their in my head while I'm writing):  
2. Marching Orders - Monty Python and the Holy Grail - Knights who say Ni, singing knights, killer bunny(the most obvious one, because I said it was from that)  
4. Into the Woods We Go - Hope Floats - blow the stink off you  
- A Knight's Tale - Jocelyn goes to William (Dawn goes to Dagonet, even though I couldn't remember the movie, just the now infamous quote)  
5. Through Hell and High Water - Fellowship of the Ring - get them up. ("Dagonet, get them up")  
- Shaun of the Dead - "You've got red on you." (Dawn to Arthur)

6. Grief In Battle - Scooby-Doo - spirit-thingy (Daphne says it, then Buffy says it)  
Oh, and I completely forgot that I used the alternate ending for the last scene in 467. I also didn't write Tristan's death scene for two reasons. 1. I nearly killed me to kill Dagonet and would have finished me off if I had to do the same thing with Tristan, and 2. It really didn't fit into the whole Dawn/Guinevere/Arthur/Lancelot flow I was having.  
Question: Boy or Girl? Just wondering what you all think about it.

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8. Lullaby

Dawn stalked through the halls of the Council headquarters. She could not believe this. She'd been pulled through time by the powers, had fallen in love, had fought in two serious battles, gotten pregnant, and lost her love. You'd think her friends and family would understand that she was a big girl and could take care of herself. You'd think they'd tell her the truth, not lie to her or omit certain facts about what had happened while she was gone. They still treated her like she was a little girl. She was going to be a mother soon.

She pushed Giles' door open, narrowing her eyes at the older man. She expected this from Buffy, but Giles? He was always telling her how she needed to act like an adult. Now he was shielding her too?

Willow was in there with him, talking quietly about something when she entered. Giles stared at Dawn for a second before gesturing for her to come into the room.

"What can we do for you, Dawn?" He asked, flipping through some papers on his desk, and nonchalantly slipping them in his top desk draw. The one with the lock.

"You can stop hiding things from me." Dawn said, hands on her hips.

"Dawnie -" Willow started, but Dawn held up a hand.

"No. Why didn't you tell me that the Powers had a hand in sending me home?"

"Where did you hear that?"

"From me." Buffy said, entering the room with Xander. "She wouldn't let me explain. She -"

"I want to know why I wasn't told." Dawn demanded, cutting Buffy off. "It involves me and my child. It's important that I know what you found out about it."

Giles sighed heavily. He'd known that Dawn would find it out eventually. She was a smart girl. He sat down in his chair, hoping she would sit as well. She did.

"When we discovered you missing, we called in Willow."

"I know this already."

"Do be patient and let me continue." Giles said pointedly.

"Go ahead." Dawn said.

"She was able to find an emotional signature of yours, which told us that you were fifteen hundred years in the past. It also told her that something very strong sent you back there, using the Key's energy."

"Using the key's energy?" Dawn asked. "They tinkered with me?"

"Yes. They wanted to send you back." Giles said softly.

"We don't know why they did it, Dawnie." Willow said, putting her hand on her shoulder. "Whistler wouldn't tell us why. He said he didn't know."

"Then why am I back?" Dawn demanded, her face becoming blank.

"We - Willow, she saw your shadow in the past. She said you were trapped in the middle of a war. We didn't want anything to happen to you." Buffy sighed. "We just wanted you to be safe, to be home. Didn't you want to come home?" She demanded.

"Yeah - and no." Dawn said quietly. "I found a place there. I made friends and family there. I had a purpose."

"You have a purpose here!" Buffy cried. "You have family here, you have friends here -"

"I had love there!" Dawn yelled, turning to her sister. "I had people who depended on me."

"Dawnie -" Buffy started.

"Dawn, when I saw you last, there was someone behind you." Willow interrupted. "We thought you were gonna die. So we made Whistler bring you back. Your friends, the knights? Do you want to know what happened?"

"Lancelot and Tristan died." Dawn said sadly. "I saw that much."

"The rest lived. They - they were grieving. I could see them." Willow said. "There was three men standing, one kneeling and a woman."

"They made it through?" Dawn whispered. The others had lived.

"Yep."

Dawn felt relief soar through her. Not all of them had died. There was hope. But just as she began to feel that relief, the words sunk in. The Powers had messed with her, and they hadn't asked why?

"Why did they send me back?" Dawn asked calmly.

"We -we don't know." Willow looked over at Buffy and Giles, who nodded in agreement.

"You didn't think to ask?"  
"No, we did - but Whistler didn't know."

"I want to meet with Whistler." Dawn decided then and there that she would know why she was sent back. And if they could tell her anything.

"He's left already." Buffy said.

"Track him down like you did the first time."

"Dawnie -"

"You're not changing my mind about this."

Dawn sat at the bar, two days later, waiting anxiously for the balance demon to meet with her. He'd given them this address for her to meet him at, probably to make sure he kept as far away from Buffy as possible. She'd only brought one other person with her, and that was Willow. Out of all the Scoobies, Will seemed to understand what she was going through best. That was probably due to the fact that she'd 'seen' the battle and that she'd gone through something similar when Tara had died.

Dawn sighed, twirling the straw in her glass. She looked around the crowded pub, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. Willow watched her from the corner she was sitting in. Whistler had been very clear on saying he would only talk to Dawn.

"Anything else, miss?" The bartender asked., coming to stand in front of her.

"What?" She looked up at him for a minute. "No, I'm good."

"You're glass is empty."

"Oh, um, another water then. Can I get lemon in it?"

"Sure thing." The blonde man smiled at her, taking the cup and filling it with more water. "Do I know you from somewhere?" He asked.  
"I don't think so." She said, rolling her eyes. Was he trying to pick her up?

"Are you sure? You look really familiar. Have you been in here before?"

"Nope, first time." Dawn said, getting annoyed by him. She finally looked at him, ready to snap. "Look, I'm waiting for a friend of mine, so if you don't . . ." She trailed off.

Dawn looked at him, harder. There was something there, something eerily familiar. He was blonde, with short hair. He had a baby-face, bright happy eyes, and a scruffy chin. Dawn frowned in confusion. She knew his face. Her mouth dropped open, forming a small o as she realized where she knew him from.

"Gawain?" She whispered.

Willow watched as Dawn stared up at the hottie at the bar. Hottie? Where had that come from? And why was Dawn talking to him? Willow squinted her eyes, trying to see his face. Her eyes widened in shock as she recognized him. She'd seen it on a battlefield, with three bodies piled up at his feet. He'd been one of the knights.

Gavin Mitchell had been watching the girl since she'd walked in, trying to place a name to the face. It was weird, seeing her and not being able to place her. It was then, with the whispered name, that he did. She'd been in a dream, long ago. He used to dream of being a warrior, and in those dreams he saw many things. But this woman had been in it often enough. That and a feeling of pain.

"No, it's - I mean, I'm Gavin. Gavin Mitchell." He stared at her. "Your name - it wouldn't be Dawn?" He said, unnerved that she'd called him by the name he'd always had in those dreams.

"Yeah."

"Are you serious?"

"Yes! Gawain- I mean, Gavin - where do you know me from?" She leaned forward, grabbing his arm. She looked so hopeful, needing to hear the answer from him.

"It's strange, but I used to have these dreams as kid. You were in them, with a man. You were always together."

"What was his name?" She asked, tears sparkling in her eyes.

"Dag - or something. He - but something bad happened to him."

"Ga-vin, have you seen him? Here, like you've seen me?" Dawn asked, her heart soaring. If Gawain was here, in this time, Dagonet and the other knights might be as well.

"No."

Dawn's hopes crashed. She tried to calm herself, but it was so hard. Why would they bring Gawain back and not the other knights? Or had they brought them back, and the knights hadn't met yet? Thoughts raced across her mind as she let go of Gawain's hand.

"Sorry." Gavin said.

"It's not your fault." Dawn slipped a hand into her back pocket. Pulling out a small business card with her name and number on it, she quickly jotted down her cell phone number. "If you do, or if you see anyone else who was in these dreams, could you call me? It's very important that I find them. Feel free to call me if you remember anything at all about these dreams."

"You're not completely freaked out that I just came up to you and said I knew you from a dream?" Gavin asked curiously. "It's kinda out there."  
"Nope." She gave him a small smile. "I'm not easily freaked. It seems like I know you from a dream too."

Gavin smiled at her, nodding. Then he turned away, going to serve the customers who were getting annoyed with him. With a muttered, I'll be back, he turned away from the girl who seemed so familiar. Dawn closed her eyes. There was hope. There was a chance she could find Dagonet in this life, in this time.

Whistler watched from the shadows as the bartender left her then. It was good that she saw one of them. It would make things easier to explain. He, with one eye on the mega-witch in the corner, slipped through the heavy afternoon congestion of the pub, slipping into the empty bar stool.

"Dawn Summers?" He said, catching her off guard.

"Yeah?" She spun around to face him. "You'd be Whistler, then?"

"Hole in one." He grinned at her. "So, you wanted to talk."

"Yeah. To the Powers. Buffy said you didn't know the details on my 'big project', so talking to you would be kinda pointless." Dawn snapped.

"True. But you can always ask me. I might know something."

"I really doubt that." She paused, thinking for a second. "You chose this place. Was it so that I could see Gawain?"

"Don't you mean Gavin?" Whistler chuckled. "He's not Gawain anymore. Gawain died a thousand years ago."

"But he remembers. Which means they were reincarnated. Is -"

"I don't know."

"But you knew about Gawain!" She cried.

"Keep your voice down, Key."

Dawn felt like screaming. This was pointless. He didn't know anything she didn't already know. After all the Powers had put her through, now he was telling her to be quiet?

"I knew about that one, only because they told me."

"Why did they send me back? Was I even supposed to come home?" She tried to keep the anger out of her voice.

"Yes, you were. Your sister just made us bring you back sooner. Which was a good thing, cause that Saxon had your number."

"So I didn't have a choice in the matter at all?"

"Oh, no. You had a lot of choices. We just didn't see you making certain choices that you did."

"Like?"

"Like fighting for one. As far as we all knew, you'd be running away at each of the battles. You chose to fight." Whistler said. "Threw us all for a loop."

"What?"

"Well, for the most part, you're not a warrior. Your the scholar. You really haven't got any great super powers that you can use, and hadn't ever truly been in that kind of situation."

"I thought you didn't know a lot about my 'big project'." Dawn snapped, getting angrier by the second.

"That's what I do know. I can't explain any more, cause I don't know any more." Whistler paused, glancing back at the witch. "But if you come with me, I can take you to somebody who does."

"You can?"

"Yeah, but the witch has to stay."

"Why?"

"Cause she does."

"Fine."

Whistler slipped from the stool, waiting for her to follow. Dawn took one last sip from the glass and followed. Whistler looked over to the witch one last time as he led Dawn out through the back door. Grinning, he snapped his fingers, brining the pub back to life. The Key didn't know he'd done it, and neither would the witch.

Across the pub, Willow stared in confusion at the now empty stool. Dawn had been there a second ago, talking to the bartender. Where was she? Jumping up, she made her way to where Dawn had been sitting. She tried to get the attention of the bartender.

"Excuse me? Did you see where the girl sitting here went?"

"Dawn? She left?" Gavin asked.

"You know her then?"

"Yeah- it's a long story."

"You were a knight in a past life?" Willow asked.

"No. . . but I had a dream I was - wait, how did you know that?" Gavin demanded.

"Because I saw you - oh, never mind! Did you see where she went? She's pregnant, and I don't want anything bad to happen to her." Willow cried, her voice getting high and panicky.

"She's pregnant? Is that why she's looking for that guy?"

"Part of it. Did you see?"

"No. I only turned away for a minute."

"I have to find her, or Buffy is gonna kill me." Willow looked around the pub, but there was no sign of Dawnie.

Gavin watched as the emotions played across the red-head's face. She was really worried about the girl. He was as well, but he couldn't explain it. It was then that he finally made the decision.

"She probably went out the back door, it's closer." Gavin quickly undid the ties of his apron, tossing it to the other bartender. "Oi, take over for me."

"I'm still on my break!" The other man cried.

"I don't care. I gotta go." Gavin popped the counter up, slipping out from behind the bar. He took the red-head's arm in his and led her through the crowd. "My name's Gavin Mitchell by the way."

"Willow Rosenberg." Willow said, following him. "Nice to meet you."

"Same here. Let's see if we can find Dawn."

"Good plan."

Dawn followed Whistler as he led her into the cavern. She wasn't sure how they'd gotten there so fast, but she guessed it was through his powers. She felt her heart pound against her chest as she neared the glowing doorway.

"This is it."

"What?"

"This is where you get to talk to the Powers. Or their direct line, to be more accurate."

"Direct line?"

"Yeah, someone that's tapped into the powers." Whistler said, holding the door open for her. "I can't go with you." He said.

"Figures." Dawn said, taking a deep breath as she walked through the doorway into the glowing white room.

Whistler watched as it slammed shut behind her. Sighing, he turned and headed out of the cave. He had a feeling she'd be in there a long time.

Dawn blinked, trying to see. The light was so bright, how could anybody see clearly. There was one person in the room, her back to the light. Long dark hair flowed over her shoulders, and she wore a white gown. She looked like a Roman noble woman.

"Miss Summers, it is unfortunate that you are here."

"What?"

"You should not be here."

"Why not?"

"Because you failed your mission." The woman said disdainfully.

"What mission?"

"Your mission to conceive the right child."

Whistler groaned when he saw witch and the bartender. Could they ever just let a demon do his job? No, they had to be annoying and question his motives. He held up a hand for them to stop.

"Whistler! Where's Dawn?" Willow yelled. "What did you do with her?"

"If anything happened to that girl, I'm gonna -" Gavin started to threaten the demon.

"Look, she wanted answers I can't give her. So, she's meeting with the Powers."

"Meeting with the Powers? I thought you had to become a Higher Being to meet them."

"You do, but not in order to meet a direct liaison."

"Am I supposed to be following this?" Gavin demanded.

"No." Willow said distractedly. "Are they going to tell her why they sent her back?"

"That's the plan." Whistler sighed. "I think."

"The right child?" Dawn cried, her hand going to her stomach.

"You not only compromised yourself, but you also failed to capture the heart of the _right _knight." The woman continued.

"What?"

"The key is weak in human form." She said disgustedly. "You were to conceive the child told of in prophecies."

"What child and what prophecies?" Dawn demanded.

"When the key is made flesh, it shall carry the one to unite the nations. Born of the Dark knight's blood, formed in the host of the Key. The child will unite all in the battle against the immortal." The woman recited, bored. "You let yourself get attached to the _wrong_ knight, conceived the _wrong_ child, and have probably damned the world."

"I _let _myself? Were you ever even human once? It's not something you can choose to do! I loved Dagonet!"

"Yes, we all saw how you grieved for him." The woman rolled her eyes at her. "Touching."

"Don't mock my grief!" Dawn yelled. "Part of me died that day!"

"If you'd chosen correctly, it wouldn't have." The woman sneered.

"You bitch!" Dawn yelled, charging at her.

Suddenly there was a bright flash of white light, that stopped Dawn in her tracks, blinding her for a second. When she could see again, the woman was gone. In her place stood a short, curly haired brunette haired woman. She gave Dawn a big smile.

"Hey, Dawnie." Cordelia Chase smiled, walking over to the younger woman.

Gavin listened to the two people. This wasn't making any sense. They were talking about powers and Dawn going back somewhere. He put his head in his hands, closing his eyes.

In the back of his mind, he could see Dawn embracing the other man, the one she was looking for. He could see her shooting arrows across a frozen lake, and feel her hit him. He looked up. Had he actually lived through those things? And if he did, why were the memories racing back to him now?

Dawn stared in shock at the former Sunnydale cheerleader. Last she'd heard, Cordelia was dead. Dawn took a step back.

"Cordelia? I thought -"

"That I was dead?" Cordelia smiled. "Well, I am. The Powers thought you'd need someone more - nicer than that Super Bitch."

"So they sent Queen C?" Dawn asked, confused.

"Yep. I've been through two demonic pregnancies, got screwed over by the PtB, and know you."

"My pregnancy isn't demonic!" Dawn cried defensively.

"No, it's not." Cordy said softly.

"She - she said I chose wrong. How was I supposed to choose?" Dawn asked, tears coming to her eyes again.

"Europa's kinda - well, she didn't exactly make wise love connections. She hooked up with a bull and had his babies." Cordelia sighed. "We both know that love can't be controlled. After all that happened with our groups over the years, you'd think they know better than try to force one of us to not fall in love."

"Cordelia, I saw Gawain! He's alive. Is - is Dagonet here too?"

Cordelia gave her a sad look. Dawn felt panic flow through her. They were keeping something from her. Cordelia put her arm around the younger woman.

"There's something I need to tell you, Dawn." Cordelia said softly. "The others, all of them - they got the chance to live again."

"And Dagonet?"

"He didn't." Cordelia said. "You weren't supposed to fall for him. All of that was set up so you would fall for -"

"Who?" Dawn hissed. "Who was I supposed to fall for?"

"Lancelot. He's the Dark Knight."

"Why not Dagonet? What was so wrong with him that he didn't deserve to be loved?" Dawn yelled, tears streaming down her face. "Why didn't he get the chance to live again?"

"Dawnie, he was offered something better." Cordelia said, taking her by the shoulders. "Don't make me have to smack you, Dawn."

"But - "

"Look, he made a choice. He made a lot of choices. At the time, he didn't want to live in a world you weren't in. He didn't know."

"And the baby? Are the powers going to take it from me too?" Dawn spat, falling to her knees.

"No." Cordelia said simply. "They won't. You've lost too much to lose that too. But you're being given another mission. You have to get as many of the knights back together, Dawn. It is so important that you do this. You've already gotten Gawain, you just need the other five and Guinevere."

"I'm supposed to find them? How?"

"I can't tell you any more than that." Cordelia stood up, extending her hand to the younger girl. "My time's running short here, and Willow's waiting out there for you."

"Wait," Dawn said softly. "If you see him, will you tell him I love him?"

"Sure." Cordelia smiled. "I saw the one's you had to pick fro, and hello salty-goodness. You have good taste, kid."

"Wait, Cordy!"

"What? You asked for one thing, and I already promised!"

"It's - the little boy, Lucan. What happened to him?"

"He grew up, became a warrior like Dagonet. He married, had a family, and died an old man." Cordy smiled. "Named his first born son after Dagonet, and his first daughter after you. He married Bors' youngest daughter. You should be going now, Dawn."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Dawn stumbled out of the doorway. Willow was at her side immediately. Dawn felt the tears there, pouring down her cheeks. She'd never see Dagonet again. She'd see the rest of them, but never him.

"Dawnie? What's wrong?"  
"He's really gone." She whispered. "I can never get him back."

Gawain - Gavin - whatever his name was in this time was sitting on a box in the alleyway behind the bar. He was signing under his breathe.

"Land of bear and land of eagle. Land that gave us birth and blessing. Land that called us ever homewards. We will go home across the mountains. We will go home, we will go home. We will go home across the mountains. Hear our singing, hear our longing. We will go home across the mountains. We will go home, we will go home." Gavin looked at her. "I remember."

A/N: Dun, dun, dun. So, there's one more chapter left. What more can I possible throw in there? Better question is - what do you think?


	9. 9 With Hope, Love Should End With Hope

Title: Protector Of The Weak

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 to R (for language and some mild naughtiness)

Disclaimer: Not mine. Joss owns all things BtVS, and somebody else owns K.A.

Spoilers: Season 7, and the movie _King Arthur_

Summary: Searching for people, getting real answers, and a bit of intrigue to end it all.

A/N: _Wow. Just wow. This story has changed so much from the original conception I had of it. Trust me, this incarnation of it is far better than the original little nugget of inspiration I had (it involved Dawn popping back in time (a young Dawn) Dagonet saving her from Woads, and her popping back). Then it changed to Dawn being older and falling in love with Dagonet, and him dying in battle while she rode off with little Lucan. I'm glad it's changed. When I started writing this, my main goal was "Get some KA crossovers out there. Maybe if you do it, someone else will too." (I'm in a class where all of our writing has to have 'goals') I don't think I've been so committed to writing something as I have been about this story._

Thank you for reading it. Thank you for reviewing it. Your words of encouragement have meant the world to me. They've made all the difference in the world. Thank you for sticking through all the twists, turns, bumps, tears, and bruises that have come with the writing and reading of this story.  
For those who hadn't seen this movie before, but read it anyway, I'm glad I could bring a story that had touched me deeply to you. It's a good movie, and the more people who see that can hopefully get what I got out of it. I used to be a purely HP/BtVS writer, but I got brave and tried something new. I'm glad you all came along for the ride.  
Who knew that a little over two weeks ago (it seems much longer than that, doesn't it?) that this story would grow to this size (becoming my longest completed fic by word count and my most reviewed as well). This is the last chapter of Protector of the Weak_, and while it is sad to see it go, I don't think it'll be the end of this universe. . . but I would keep my eyes peeled for the sequel, _Sarmatian Ladies_. That is, if you're all interested in the sequel._

__

9. With Hope, Love Should End With Hope

Dawn sighed as she stared at the computer screen. They'd been looking for three weeks so far, but out of all of the knights, they were still five short. All they had was Gawain. Damn, Gavin. His name was Gavin. It was so hard for her to remember that. There were so many things about him that screamed out Gawain, but he was actually interesting to her this time around. Of course, she'd actually gotten to know him. And it was much better now that he wasn't constantly asking if she was a Woad anymore. They'd finally gotten him to agree to moving into a new home Dawn had gotten for the knights. Now she just needed to find the rest of them.

She glanced over at the wall of sketches she'd done the week after they'd found Gavin. On her large memo board were detailed portraits of each knight she'd met. Dagonet's was in the center, surrounded by the others. It was at moments like this that she was glad she'd taken all of those art classes in school. Her art teacher had always told her she'd had great potential.

Great potential. How many times had she heard that word thrown around her the past six years? Great potential as an artist, great potential as weapon of mass destruction and chaos. Potential slayer. She had the potential to be a great breeding experiment. Well, the Powers had fucked up and they could kiss her ass if they thought she was gonna play by their rules anymore. She was done being what everyone wanted her to be. She was going to be a mom, and that in itself was completely scary. Not only that, she was going to be a single mom who led a life of danger and dumb ass prophecies that sent people back in time.

She wasn't sure she really knew what to expect. Life just seemed to be getting more and more complicated by the second. It seemed like every time she'd gotten to a good point in her life, the Powers or stupid evil people kept slapping her down. Frustrated, she yanked open her top desk drawer and pulled out the tiny composition book she'd hidden there. In her spare time, as if she ever got any, she'd been trying to pick baby names. Picking a boy's name had been fairly simple. If it was a boy, she'd name him William Dagonet and be done with it. He'd be named after the two men who'd always tried to protect her. It also helped that she'd found out William meant 'a strong and resolute protector'.

It was picking a girl's name that proved to be so hard. Everyone was sure the baby was going to be a girl. How could it not be? After countless hours of searching online, she'd gotten a good grasp of what she might want. For first names, it was pretty much narrowed down to two: Nerys or Aithne. The middle name was easy: Joyce. Nerys held a special place in her heart. It meant lady in Welsh. That was what the knights had called her.

There was a soft knock at her door. Dawn quickly covered the memo board before calling them in. She locked her eyes on the computer screen.

"Yeah?"

"Miss Summers?" A woman's voice echoed into the room, her accent marking her as British. "Mr. Giles sent me with some paperwork to you fill out."

"Really?" Dawn looked up then, curious as to what Giles would want her to sign. Dawn felt her heart stop as she looked up into the face of woman. "Oh my . . "

"Miss Summers? You all right?" She asked.

"Guinevere?" Dawn whispered.

Gwen Hamlin felt her step falter as she crossed over to the big oak desk She'd only been working for the Council for a week or so, having taken over the position her father once held as a watcher. She hadn't actually gone through any serious training yet, but she felt she could do as good a job as her father had. But she didn't think her progress had reached Miss Summers yet. She was in the inner circle, and still recovering from some ordeal the rest of the inner circle had worked very hard to keep quiet.

"No, Miss Summers. But you're very close." Gwen said brightly. "I'm Gwen Hamlin, George Hamlin's daughter."

"Who?" Dawn asked, confused.

"He was the Watcher of the slayer from 1982 to 1984." Gwen replied. Didn't she already know this?

"Oh." Dawn paused, her brow scrunched in confusion. "You haven't worked here long, have you?"

"I started about a week ago." Gwen said cautiously. What was she on about?

"A week. . ."

"Mr. Giles asked that I bring this to you." Gwen said, handing her the packet of papers he'd given her.

"Oh, thanks." Dawn glanced down at them. They were department transfer papers. "You're coming to work in the Ancient Languages department?"

"Mr. Giles said it was a very special department and that my expertise would be needed here." Gwen nodded. "Especially now that you're planning on taking maternity leave in a few months time. He thought it best if I come and learn the ropes."

Dawn flipped through the packet. A number of emotions were swamping her. Angry that Giles had not only picked someone to be placed in her department, but had gotten a replacement for her. Confusion at why Guinevere had shown up now and didn't seem to remember anything. Then she read the Post-it note on top of Gwen's picture.

__

It seems the Powers have placed another one under your care. She's overly qualified for both your department and your mission.

Dawn blinked in surprise. Giles, along with Buffy, had been the most adamant that she not take on this mission. It was shocking. Gwen watched her, noticing small things around the room. Things that seemed out of place.

"Oh, you can sit down." Dawn said belatedly, gesturing to the empty chair. "I guess I should welcome you."

"It's not really -" Gwen smiled brightly. "I'm just pleased that they've found a place for me here."

"It says here that you speak three of the dead languages as well as - " Dawn stuttered, her eyes catching the words printed on the paper before her. "Um, sorry. You're majoring in British History?"

"Yes, I've always been fascinated by the tribes that inhabited the country before the Romans arrived." Gwen smiled. Dawn bit her lip to keep from crying out. Maybe she did remember.

"Really?" Dawn tilted her head to the side. "Are you trained in any fighting or weapon skills?"

"Yes. My father believed that I should know how to defend myself should any rogue demons and vampires attack. It's the life of a Watcher's child." Gwen said, sitting up straighter in the high backed chair.

"Yeah." Dawn said softly, her hand going to her stomach.

"I didn't -"Gwen started, hoping she hadn't lodged her whole foot in her mouth.

"What kind of weapons?" Dawn shook her head, probing the other woman.

"Crossbow, hand axe, dagger." Gwen smiled, thinking back to her childhood and teen years. "I always fancied myself a bit of an Amazon."

"Cross bow, not just a regular longbow?"

"Well, I know both, but I must admit I do prefer a longbow. It's got more of a feel to it." Gwen replied instantly, not even thinking. "How -"

"I prefer the long bow to the cross bow. My sister doesn't." Dawn said, remembering the huge argument that had broken out between them when Dawn had wanted to start training Gavin in using a longbow.

It had been with that argument that Buffy had learned Dawn had killed. It had been horrible. Buffy had given her this horrified expression, as if she were the worst thing in the entire world. Buffy had been back in Rome since then. Which really annoyed Dawn the most. Her fighting and killing people had had nothing to do with power, like it had for Willow and Faith years ago. It had been necessary to the survival of not only herself, but of innocent people as well.

She felt bad that she had to do it, sure. But there wasn't a doubt in her mind that if she hadn't, someone else would have died. It hurt that Buffy was being distant, but she couldn't spend all of her time looking for her sister's approval. Buffy had stopped giving it years ago, so she'd stopped looking for it.

"Your sister is quite famous." Gwen said, uncertain of what to say next. "Not that the other inner Council members aren't as well."

"The others are. Me? I normally get left out of the decision making process." Dawn snorted. "Including on what I get informed of."

Gwen was silent for a moment. She was trying to take the words in and wondering why Dawn was being so open with her. Then it hit her.

"Bugger all, they didn't clear this with you, did they?" Gwen cried.

"Well, no, not the 'adding you to the department to take over for me' part." Dawn said, thinking quickly. "Because there was already someone to do that for me, for when I left for the fall semester. But Giles had mentioned you in passing for a special project I'm heading."

"Really?" Gwen asked.

"Yes. It's actually right up your alley." Dawn paused. How to put this gently without totally freaking her out? "I'm certain you've heard of the legend of King Arthur?"

"Of course." Gwen said cautiously.

"Certain . . . elements have presented themselves, and the Council - _I_ am in charge of gathering them together."

"What does that mean?"

"In plain English?" Dawn coughed. "I have to gather up the Knights of the Round Table, Arthur, and Guinevere to fulfill a prophecy that pretty much wrecked my life."

"Oh."

"Yeah." Dawn gave a small laugh.

Cordelia Chase glared at her partner. Europa, the super-bitch was carrying on about their 'charge' again. She really wished she'd lay off Dawn. The girl had it pretty rough right now, and the Powers weren't making it any easier. Not that they would if they could anyway.

"The Key is an imbecile." Europa huffed as they watched Dawn tell Guinevere about the mission. "Becoming human was the worst possible thing to happen to it."

"Yeah, cuz when it was a glowing green power source for all and sundry to use at will it was tons better." Cordelia snorted. "And like you made the best choices a person could make. You made out with a bull!"

"That was different. He was a god." Europa said seething at the younger Higher Being.

"That didn't stop you from falling for him and getting your heart broken." Cordelia sighed. "You've been up here too long."

Cordelia glanced over her shoulder at the doorway. Europa would throw a huge diva style fit if she knew what Cordelia was planning. Good thing she was always so wrapped up in how Dawn was going to screw everything up. It took the pressure off just a little bit.

"Has the child never heard of tact?" Europa cried.

"It's a Sunnydale curse." Cordelia muttered.

While Europa stewed on about Dawn's many faults, Cordelia slipped away. The red handled doorknob in her hand, she twisted it open slowly. If the Powers wanted to fuck with another Sunnydale alum, they'd have to go through Queen C to do it.

Gwen sat very still for a long time. Was she serious? Gwen had a very strong feeling that she was. Something about her screamed out trust me. Gwen was unsettled by that feeling. She wasn't used to that feeling. But then this woman had lived on the Hellmouth for most of her life, so it could be just that vibe that had Gwen distrusting her.

"I was always fascinated by the Hellmouth." Gwen said quietly.

"Huh?" Dawn asked, confused.

"Before it sunk in, of course. Not because it was the Hellmouth, quite the opposite, actually. Because of it's name." Gwen smiled. "It seemed such a wonderful place. Sunnydale. Who would suspect it of being so evil with a name like that?"

"It had it's moments." Dawn said slowly.

Gwen's eyes, which had been down, flicked up quickly. Images of cart crowded with people played through her mind, a woman talking quietly, helping her to keep her mind off of the pain that throbbed through her. Gwen sucked in a mouthful of air, like she was drowning in a large lake. What was going on? The image changed, and she saw Dawn with her back to a large man, and Gwen could feel the vibration of a longbow in her hands. The scream of battle tearing through her lungs, blood pumping through her veins.

Dawn watched her, not sure if she was remembering or if she was on the verge of running away screaming. Gwen shot her eyes up, trying to catch Dawn's.

"Dawn. . .you called me Guinevere."

"That was your name a very long time ago." Dawn said softly. "We were sisters in arms."

"Dawn? Willow said you'd be in here, and . . ." Gavin called from the doorway, startling the two women. He looked between them, his eyes growing wide. "You found Guinevere?"

"Who's he?" Gwen asked. His face was very familiar.

"Gawain." Dawn replied.

"Gavin." Gavin retorted, rolling his eyes. "I've been here nearly a month, you should know this by now." He said playfully.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You'll always be Gawain to me." Dawn sighed.

He was sitting on the hill of rolling green grass. He wasn't looking at anything, just staring into the sky. He wasn't even sure it was actually sky. But he'd been staring at it anyway. He heard the rustling of the grass from behind him. Years ago, lifetimes actually, he would have been at the ready with his sword or axe at hand. But he was no longer in that life, nor any other kind of life. He was in the havens. A true paradise, even if it bore only one single flaw.

"Speak, lady." He said quietly.

"You're good."

"You're loud." He cast his eyes up to the woman.

She looked rather insulted. Not that he particularly cared, but he felt a pang of guilt at his words. Just because he was upset with the Powers didn't mean he had the right to take it out on her. She hadn't been here all those years ago. She hadn't given him his choices.

"I apologize."

"Oh, wow, you are too good to be true." She rolled her eyes and sat down beside him. "It kinda sucks, the situation they put you in."

"I chose this, lady." He kept his eyes on the sky, trying to show his indifference.

"They lied to you, trying to make you chose this, you know." She replied, crossing her arms over her chest.

"They told me she would not be born again in the next life so that I would trap myself here?" He slid his glance over to her. "Why?"

"Because there were secrets about Dawn that she didn't have time to tell you about." Cordelia sighed. "And technically, they were right about that. Dawn wouldn't have been reincarnated like you would have. She wouldn't even have been born yet."

"How -"

"Dawn wasn't always a human. She didn't always have a soul." Cordelia paused. "And having a soul makes you as close to human as you can be."  
"She was human. She had flesh, blood, and spirit." He said flatly.

"Yeah, she did. When she met you. She wasn't born in your time, though. She was born in the future."

"What?"

"Dawn was sent back into the past to meet you and the other knights." Cordelia let that sink in for him before she continued on. "Dawn wasn't always human. For thousands of years, she was just a ball of green energy called the Key."

"The Key? What did she open?"

"Portals to other dimensions and times. The Key was hidden away so that a Hell god couldn't return to her dimension." Cordelia thought for a moment. "But the minions of this god, tracked it down. They killed the monks who were protecting the Key. In order to keep her from finding it, the monks made the key into a person. A pure innocent."

"That would not protect her." He said quietly.

"No, but they created memories for her and gave her to a great warrior who would protect her."

"Her sister." He whispered.

"The Slayer."

He remembered Dawn telling him of how her sister was a great warrior. He remembered the look on her face when she spoke of her. The woman had once been her hero, but there was pain in that look as well. He had wished back then that he could have erased the sadness he saw there. Cordelia watched him for some sign of understanding. All she saw him do was clench his fist.

"The girl you met is a new soul. She was only human for five years when you met her. That's why they said she wouldn't meet you in the next life."

He lowered his head into his hands. She would have lived again, just no in his time.

"She was sent back to your time to meet the knights, conceive Lancelot's child, and escape the battle."

"Lancelot's child?" He deadpanned. Had his friend betrayed his memory? Had she?

"Instead, she got herself tangled up in a whole heap of other things." Cordelia continued on, noticing his fingers clench tighter. "Like you."

"What?"

"She was supposed to fall in love with Lancelot. But she fell in love with you. She was supposed to run away from the battles, but she stayed because of you."

"Battles? The battle at the frozen lake." He said quietly.

"And the battle at Badon Hill."

"What battle?"

"The one against the entire Saxon army. The one where Lancelot and Tristan died." Cordelia sighed. "They were hell to deal with when they were up here, I've been told. They tried looking for you, to tell you how she fought and how she grieved. It was before my time, but the Powers told me what happened."

"My brothers." He said quietly.

"The Powers put a lot of faith in Dawn to act like she was just a scared little girl, they didn't take all that had happened to her into account. They forgot she knew Spike and Angel, forgot that her first crushes had been on Xander and Riley. Protectors and those who see all. Zeppos." Cordelia chuckled. "Bad boys with big attitudes were a dime a dozen for her. But guys like you, those were something rarer. The fact that you're pretty hot didn't help or hinder anything at all."

Cordelia watched him, making up her mind to tell him what he needed to know. She sighed. He'd picked a beautifully empty place to spend eternity. But it was lonely. He was lonely. She knew how he felt.

"The Powers don't want me to tell you this, but I think you deserve to hear it." Cordelia sighed. "Dawn didn't completely fail the mission. She went back in time, fought in the battles, and conceived a child."

Dagonet turned to stare at her, looking into her face for the first time. Had he heard her correctly? Dawn - _his_ Dawn - had conceived a child? When? Whose child?

"She conceived a child?" He asked, his voice gruff with emotion.

"Yes." Cordelia smiled. "Your child, Dagonet."

"My child?" He said, disbelievingly. "My child."

A large smile broke out across his face as the sunlight peeked out from behind two large clouds. Tears of joy glistened in his eyes as he imagined her heavy with his child. He was going to be -

The smile was gone as fast as it had come. His child would never know him. He would never look upon the infant's face, or hold it in his arms. He would not teach it how to mend wounds, hold a sword, or ride a horse.

"Have you come to torture me, lady? You could not have found a better weapon than this."

"No, I've come to give you a new choice." Dagonet looked up at her words, a questioning look in his eyes. "I wanna send you to her."

Gavin, Gwen and Dawn had spent the remainder of the day getting to know each other. It was important that they do so. Having finally gotten Gavin into believing he was a knight, Dawn had convinced him to move into one of the Council's homes. He would be paid to learn how to fight. Dawn had been resolute on that, and while Buffy didn't exactly agree a hundred percent, Willow, Giles and even Xander agreed. Now they would have to move Gwen's things into the house as well. Dawn was in the process of finding a more permanent home for them, however.

They had had to find a house that was close to the wall for one thing. For another, it was half crowded with Watcher Trainees. Gavin shared a flat in London with a friend, Gwen still lived in her family's home, and Dawn was still living in the Slayer Dorms.

She walked them to their cars, before turning back toward the dorms. She pressed the elevator button and waited. She couldn't stay here much longer. The dorms were a dangerous place, especially with all of the slayers around. Some of the older slayers had taken to sparring in the lounges after the gym closed. Not to mention the occasional demon attacks.

When the elevator finally arrived on her floor, Dawn was confronted with a body. A very naked, very male body that was running right at her. A surprised yelp escaped her lips as her foot jutted out to trip him and the alarms began going off on the floor. He yelled as he crashed heavily to his side. Carmen, one of the slayers who lived on her floor raced to his side, sheet clutched around her and glaring up at Dawn.

"What'd you do that for?" She accused.

"What's he doing here, Carmen? This is the under fifteen floor. You're responsible to look out for the younger girls. That's what being a mentor is." Dawn shot back. "Which means no guys staying over, Carmen. You've been told that a hundred times."

"Well, maybe you should move me to a more adult floor." Carmen snapped. "Garrett, baby, you ok?"

"'Garrett baby'?" Dawn whirled on the naked man.

"Bloody hell, what the hell hit me?"

"It's called the ground. It's what happens when your running naked from an alarm and don't look where you're going." Dawn snapped, looking at him for the first time. "You have got to be kidding me!" She yelled.

There laying on the floor, very naked and not even trying to cover himself was none other than Sir Galahad the Chaste. He looked at her as if she'd grown three heads. She gaped at him for another minute before looking up at the annoyed slayer.

"Go get his clothes, and you." She snapped at Galahad, "You are going to explain to me what you're doing with a seventeen year old girl in a private academy after hours."

"You're seventeen?" Galahad snapped. "You told me you were twenty-two."

"And you believed her?"

"Hey, I'm standing right here!" Carmen yelled.

"Carmen, go get his clothes. You, come with me." Dawn said, pointing him in the direction of the elevators. "Stupid PtB."

They'd finally decided to make things easy on her and lead her to the knights, which she'd been hoping they would do to begin with. _When it rains, it pours_. She thought, taking the clothes from Carmen and chucking them at him. It was going to be a very long night. She glanced over at him. _Pun not intended_.

Giles stared, bewildered at the appearance of a half-dressed young man and Dawn in his office. He was sure he'd seen her head home less than a half hour ago. Giles was certain he'd seen that face before.

"Dawn, what - "

"You can tell Willow that intruder spell works." Dawn said, shoving the man into the empty seat. He stared vacantly out in front of him.

"Spell?" Giles chuckled loudly. "The alarm, then?"

"Giles, he knows." Dawn rolled her eyes. "I kinda had to explain to him when he got flashbacks of being a knight."

"A knight? You've found another one? So quickly?"

"Yep. Running away from Carmen Ibanez's room."

"Not again." Giles sighed.

"Yeah, she either needs to be moved to another floor, or you're gonna have to talk to her again." Dawn shook her head. "What am I saying? Giles, I have to leave."

"Leave? Whatever for?"

"You died in battle." Galahad muttered. "Merlin told us you died!"

"Merlin lied, and shut up." Dawn snapped. "Because we need to be at the Wall. Whistler was too eager to get me back here."

"Just because he was eager - "

"When have the powers not been eager to run away from the situation? They didn't tell anyone about Angel until it was too late to stop him and Buffy. They showed up too late to tell us that Angel's group needed help last year. Giles, it's not gonna be safe for us here much longer. And as long as they keep throwing knights at my feet, it's gonna get harder for me to train them."

"It's not your job to train an army, Dawn!"

"It is." She said quietly. "It's my mission to get them ready for whatever it is the bad guys want to throw at me next."

"I don't have a lot of time here, Dagonet. So I'm only going to ask this once." Cordelia paused. "Do you love her enough to live again? To stand beside her no matter what?"

"Of course."

"That's what I was hoping you'd say." Cordelia took his hand in hers, and led him to the doorway he'd never seen there before. Before him was a wide, dark abyss. "This might hurt a little. Remember to tuck and roll."

"What?" Dagonet looked back at her.

"Good luck." Cordelia took both hands and shoved him hard through the doorway.

A loud, howling wind hit her ears as he was flung through the doorway. She smiled, hoping the big wigs hadn't caught on yet and tried to stop him. She replaced the original doorknob that had been hidden in her pocket and slipped back out into the room Europa had been in.

"Look at her now, flinging a naked knight around." Europa said disgustedly. "I swear, the champions keep getting dumber and dumber."

"Back off, bitch-o-rama. She's still a kid." Cordelia said, utterly fed-up with her. "It's not like all of the Powers are a hundred percent balls-on accurate all the time."

"Excuse me?"

"No, I don't think I will." Cordelia said, stalking out of the room.

Europa casually slid her eyes to the left, a subtle smirk playing on her lips. So the newest being had taken fate into her own hands had she? Then everything was going according to her plan. That prophecy had no hopes of coming true now. Yes, things were shaping up quite nicely.

There was a loud booming crash of thunder rolling over the hills far north of the wall. The storm had seemed to come up out of nowhere, sending flocks of birds scattering in the tempestuous air.

No rain had come yet, just the deafening roar of thunder. In a small hill-lined, lake filled valley, a huge and blinding bolt of lightening touched down. It stayed there for a little more than a minute, dancing along the ground.

There on the scorched ground, lay the body of a man.

_Two Days Later_

Dawn sighed as she pushed the sunglasses up onto her head. Giles had at least taken her seriously about dealing with Carmen. The teen slayer was being moved to a new dorm. Unfortunately, he hadn't taken her seriously on her little troop of merry men getting the hell out of Dodge. So here she was, house hunting with Gavin, Gwen, and Gala - Garrett. Near London, not near the wall where they needed to be looking.

The house they were in right now looked like it needed to be condemned. Quentin Travers didn't even deserve to live in a house like this, and he'd been a total bastard. Dawn didn't even want to touch anything in here, much less live in it.

"This one - it's kinda small isn't it?" Gavin asked. "You're gonna be raising a family here. I'd think you'd need more space."

"These are the only empty Council properties left." Gwen sighed heavily. "You can't even draw a sword in here."

"Probably can't even draw a bath." Garrett said, glancing in the tiny bathroom. "Ugh."

"This is that last house, you guys." Dawn groaned. "The problem is that's no place for us. This - and the five buildings before it - it's not where we should be. Giles knows this! I told him."

"Where should we be then? Back at the Wall that my former self tried to escape from?" Garrett snapped.

"Yes, it is. We - unlike the Slayers - need open space to fight, to learn how to properly fight again." Gwen said, backing her up. "Slayers must learn how to fight in any given space. We need to learn how to fight on a battlefield."

"To fight like the knights you once were. We need the Council's land north of the wall." Dawn said, nodding in agreement.

"Dawn? Are you in here?" Willow's voice came from the porch.

"Yeah, we're in here." Dawn called.

In the corner of her eye, she could see Gavin straighten a little. Dawn rolled her eyes. It was kinda cute, this little crush he had on Willow. Dawn wondered if he'd tell Willow that he liked her and what the witch would say about it. Willow pulled the door open and her jaw dropped. She stared in horror at the walls. Garrett chuckled loudly, Gwen bit her lip to keep from laughing at the face Willow made and smacked him.

"Ugh." Willow said. "This - this is worse than the Harris's basement."

"Tell me about it. I thought you couldn't make it today?"

"Plans changed." Willow handed Dawn a piece of paper. "Giles had me run your sketches through the net. We've already got two hits."

"Two? Who?"

"Bors and Tristan." Willow smiled. "Boris Haggarty, 31. He's a part-time soccer coach, and bartends on the side. Single, living in Hampshire." She handed Dawn the other paper. "And Trevor Bishop, 26, cab driver with a degree specializing in Military history. Didn't join up himself, but still he's got a bit of the background you'll need. Single, once again, but lives in northern London. His regular route and the cab company address."

"That gives us a good place to start." Gavin said, smiling at Willow.

"Not only that. Willow bears more good news!" Willow said happily, a little flushed at Gavin's smile. "House hunting, more north of here. Lacks this place's ambiance. But still, big enough for six growing Knights, two sisters in arms, a baby, and hopefully, a witch?" Willow said, handing Dawn a picture.

It was a large, three story country home. There was a large rolling hill dotted with flowers and sprawling trees. There was a neat little cobblestone pathway that led to the door. Dawn looked at it harder. It was gorgeous. It looked like a real home, and she hadn't had one of those for nearly three years.

"It's big enough. Where is it?"

"A mile or two south of the wall. Giles had mentioned you were looking for something like that."

"It's perfect."

"He had us looking at all of these miserable pieces of shite when we could have been packing to move into that?" Garrett cried. "That is despicable."

"Drama queen." Gwen and Dawn said together.

"That's not fair." Garrett cried.

"No, but it's true." Gavin said laughingly.

"I think we should go home, guys." Dawn said, the picture clutched gently in her hand as she looked at her new friends. She would always miss Dag, that would never change. But she would have their child, and his friends beside her. "Come on. We've got packing to do and knights to track down. They aren't going to be as easy to find as Galahad over there. Chaste my ass." Dawn snorted.

"Hey! I'm plenty chaste!" Garrett yelled.

"She found you running ass naked out of a girl's room, Gar." Gwen laughed, lacing her arm through Dawn's. "There's no way that's considered chaste."

"They've got you there." Gavin slapped him hard on the back.

"Oh yes, gang up on me. Let's all pick on the new knight."

"It's just so easy, Garrett." Dawn called back, leading them towards the car.

"It's the luck of the draw, mate."

"Oh, and why don't we ever pick on Saint Gawain over here?" Garrett demanded.

"Cuz." Dawn shot back, thoroughly enjoying the taunting of Garrett.

"Because why?"

"Just because." Dawn shrugged. "He's sweet."

"Tells great jokes." Gwen continued.

"And he's blond. We have a special place in our hearts for blonds."

"This is true."

"And it probably has something to do with the fact that his name never included 'the Chaste' or 'the Pure' at the end."

"You know, it's that false advertising that gets you every time." Gwen said seriously.

"You two are a trip." Willow laughed.

"Yup." The two women said at the exact same time.

"I think it might be time for us to start getting worried." Gavin mock-whispered to Garrett.

"Definitely."

"Just wait until the mood swings and bizarre cravings kick in." Willow said, slipping into the backseat.

"Bloody hell." Garrett groaned.

Dawn smiled. It was a good ending to long and painful journey. Scratch that. It was a good beginning to a new and exciting journey. Who knew where this path would take them? She might not have all the answers, but she had a good idea where to start.

A man standing in the shadows pulled a slim cased cell phone from his pocket. He dialed in the familiar number. It rang. Across the land and sea, over countless mountains and valleys, someone picked up.

"Yes?" The smooth voice said.

"They are moving."

"Into one of those homes in the city?"

"No, sir. Farther north of the city."

"And have all of the knights been located?"

"No. They only have the two."

"That is good news. Let us hope they do not find all of them before they reach the wall."

"Yes, sir."

The unassuming man hung up the phone, turning to his companion. She smiled.

"Your little charge has not found them all. But then, you did not come here to tell me this."

"The girl they've paired me with. She's sent the variable back to earth." Europa smiled mischievously. "With the variable here, she will never take the dark knight's heart, even if she could find him."

"Let us hope you are right, Europa."

"I am always right, my lord."

A boy of no more than eight raced quickly to his father. There was someone hurt by the lake. The man was rushed to the nearest hospital. There was no identification on him, and no one seemed to know him. He looked like a mix between soldier and a Rugby player.

He wasn't seriously hurt. There wasn't any noticeable head trauma nor any serious injuries at all. Except that he was in a coma. He slept, breathed on his own, and only needed iv's to keep him hydrated and nourished. And while he slept, he dreamed of his love and his unborn child that waited for him.

__

Fin

A/N: That's all she wrote . . .for now. Like I said, keep your eyes peeled for _Sarmatian Ladies_, which chapter one is a quarter of a way to finished now. There are people I need to thank.

Emony and Padawan: Thank you so much for doing those manips. I was very touched that my story inspired you. They're wonderful.

To all of you who reviewed (and there's quite a lot of you): Words cannot express how deeply moved I was by all of your support, constructive criticism, help, and joy at this simple little story.

I wrote this story on a complete whim. I thought everyone would think it was utter crap, that the movie was crap, and not even bother to read it. I thought the pure KA ficcers out there would skin me alive for writing this story, I thought everyone would say how out of character they were, how romantic and silly I was being. You all amazed me with your response to this story. I'd be exhausted at the end of the day, convinced everything I wrote was utter crap, and my email would be full of new reviews telling me how much you liked the way I was writing or how it made you cry or laugh (and I know I made you all cry far too much) or how much the story touched you. It made all of the gut wrenching things I had to do mean that much more. Thanks again.


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